Disappointing results see Vranjes out of Veszprém

Disappointing results see Vranjes out of Veszprém

It was a high-profile transfer and it looked like Veszprém were heading into the right direction when they appointed Swedish ace Ljubomir Vranjes as their new coach in July 2017. Yet after 15 months, the Hungarian powerhouse opted to end the 44-year-old’s contract, citing the lack of results as the main reason behind the abrupt decision.

Along with Vranjes, assistant coach Björn Sätherström and Sports Director Nikola Eklemovic will also leave the club. István Gulyás will lead the team until a new coach is appointed.

Veszprém lost the Hungarian title for the first time after 10 seasons this spring, as their bitter rivals, MOL-Pick Szeged, enjoyed a 58:57 aggregate win in the tense two-leg final battle.

But an even tougher pill for the club to swallow was last season’s elimination in the VELUX EHF Champions League Last 16. Despite being the favourites, the Hungarian team was knocked out by Skjern Handball, 61:59 on aggregate, after Veszprém were unable to bounce back from a 32:25 loss in Denmark.

The writing was on the wall for Vranjes, who had the chance to turn the team’s fate around this season, but the start of the VELUX EHF Champions League 2018/19 has been far from ideal. Veszprém lost two of the first three games, including at home against Vardar on Saturday, 27:25, and this prompted team management to end Vranjes’ contract.

The Swedish coach oversaw 51 games for the Hungarian side, winning 42 and losing seven, while two ended in a draw. The only trophy won by Veszprém in the Vranjes era was the Hungarian Cup.

Vranjes is also the Hungary men’s national team’s coach, taking the position at the same time he started coaching Veszprém.