Zoltán Opata
Encyclopedia
Zoltán Opata was a Hungarian
football player and manager. As a player he won six Hungarian league championships with Budapest-based powerhouse MTK in the 1920s and regularly appeared for Hungary national football team
. After retiring from playing he became a manager and had successful spells with clubs in Yugoslavia
, Romania
and Poland
.
, Opata first began playing as a teenager at local minnows MÁVAG in 1917. Three years later he accepted an offer to join Hungarian powerhouse MTK, who had lost some of their strikers to foreign clubs in the previous two years. Opata immediately established himself as a regular member of a star-studded squad along with teammates György Orth, József Braun
and Imre Schlosser
. In the next five years between 1920 and 1925 MTK absolutely dominated the game and topped the Hungarian League every season, in addition to winning two Hungarian Cup
s.
Opata went on to spend the best part of the decade with MTK (bar a bried spell with the Slovak
side Maccabi Brno in 1924), although in the latter part of the 1920s their fortunes began to change - their cross-city rivals Ferencváros TC won three consecutive titles between 1926 and 1928 and MTK only managed to win one more league title with Opata in 1929. That year he left MTK and had short spells with several smaller Hungarian sides, including the Miskolc
-based Attila FC, Nemzeti SC and Bocskai SC in Debrecen
and, according to some sources, he even spent the 1932–33 season at OSC Lille in France. He then returned to MTK briefly in 1933, and then signed for Attila FC again as player-manager in early 1934. Later that year he had in the same role at AC Nitra in Slovakia.
His first appearance for Hungary national team
came in April 1922 when he played as a right winger in a friendly against Austria
which ended in a 1–1 draw, and his first goal came in 7–1 win against Italy
in April 1924. That same year Opata was selected for the Hungary squad which competed in the 1924 Summer Olympics
in Paris
, where they were considered as one of the favorites of the tournament
. In the first round they trashed Poland
5–0 with Opata scoring a brace. However, in their second round match Hungary suffered a sensational 0–3 defeat to underdogs Egypt which ended their hopes of winning Olympic medals.
Opata continued to be a regular member of the national team until for the next three years and was used by managers in all positions in the attacking line, appearing in a total of 17 matches and scoring 6 goals between 1922 and 1927. After that period he was called up only once, three years later in the last game of the 1927–30 Central European International Cup against Italy in Budapest which they went on to lose 0–5.
in Berlin
where they got knocked out in the first round by Poland.
After that Opata went abroad and coached the Croatia
n side HAŠK
from 1937 to 1938 with whom he won their first Yugoslav First League
and only national title in 1938. Between 1941 and 1945 he coached CFR Cluj
in Romania
and in 1947 he signed for ITA Arad
and won the 1946–47 Romanian championship. He then briefly returned to Hungary and had spells with Ferencváros TC, Újpest FC
and Csepel SC
. In the so-called "Mighty Magyars
" era of the early 1950s Opata was a member of the national team's coaching staff and in that capacity helped them win gold in the 1952 Summer Olympics
. He then coached the Polish club Górnik Zabrze
and won the 1957 Polish league with them before retiring in 1958.
As manager
Hungary
Hungary , officially the Republic of Hungary , is a landlocked country in Central Europe. It is situated in the Carpathian Basin and is bordered by Slovakia to the north, Ukraine and Romania to the east, Serbia and Croatia to the south, Slovenia to the southwest and Austria to the west. The...
football player and manager. As a player he won six Hungarian league championships with Budapest-based powerhouse MTK in the 1920s and regularly appeared for Hungary national football team
Hungary national football team
The Hungary national football team represents Hungary in international football and is controlled by the Hungarian Football Federation....
. After retiring from playing he became a manager and had successful spells with clubs in Yugoslavia
Kingdom of Yugoslavia
The Kingdom of Yugoslavia was a state stretching from the Western Balkans to Central Europe which existed during the often-tumultuous interwar era of 1918–1941...
, Romania
Romania
Romania is a country located at the crossroads of Central and Southeastern Europe, on the Lower Danube, within and outside the Carpathian arch, bordering on the Black Sea...
and Poland
Poland
Poland , officially the Republic of Poland , is a country in Central Europe bordered by Germany to the west; the Czech Republic and Slovakia to the south; Ukraine, Belarus and Lithuania to the east; and the Baltic Sea and Kaliningrad Oblast, a Russian exclave, to the north...
.
Playing career
Born in BudapestBudapest
Budapest is the capital of Hungary. As the largest city of Hungary, it is the country's principal political, cultural, commercial, industrial, and transportation centre. In 2011, Budapest had 1,733,685 inhabitants, down from its 1989 peak of 2,113,645 due to suburbanization. The Budapest Commuter...
, Opata first began playing as a teenager at local minnows MÁVAG in 1917. Three years later he accepted an offer to join Hungarian powerhouse MTK, who had lost some of their strikers to foreign clubs in the previous two years. Opata immediately established himself as a regular member of a star-studded squad along with teammates György Orth, József Braun
József Braun
József Braun was a Hungarian football half back who began his career in Hungary before finishing it in the American Soccer League. He earned 27 caps, scoring 11 goals, with the Hungarian national team. After retiring from playing, he coached for several years...
and Imre Schlosser
Imre Schlosser
Imre Schlosser-Lakatos was a Hungarian footballer. He still holds the record as the highest goalscorer in the history of the Hungarian League....
. In the next five years between 1920 and 1925 MTK absolutely dominated the game and topped the Hungarian League every season, in addition to winning two Hungarian Cup
Magyar Kupa
The Hungarian Cup is the Hungarian cup competition for football clubs. It has been incepted by the Hungarian Football Association, the Magyar Labdarúgó Szövetség in 1909, eight years after the commencement of the Hungarian League, the Nemzeti Bajnokság.Besides all of the professional clubs of...
s.
Opata went on to spend the best part of the decade with MTK (bar a bried spell with the Slovak
Slovakia
The Slovak Republic is a landlocked state in Central Europe. It has a population of over five million and an area of about . Slovakia is bordered by the Czech Republic and Austria to the west, Poland to the north, Ukraine to the east and Hungary to the south...
side Maccabi Brno in 1924), although in the latter part of the 1920s their fortunes began to change - their cross-city rivals Ferencváros TC won three consecutive titles between 1926 and 1928 and MTK only managed to win one more league title with Opata in 1929. That year he left MTK and had short spells with several smaller Hungarian sides, including the Miskolc
Miskolc
Miskolc is a city in northeastern Hungary, mainly with heavy industrial background. With a population close to 170,000 Miskolc is the fourth largest city of Hungary It is also the county capital of Borsod-Abaúj-Zemplén and the regional centre of Northern Hungary.- Geography :Miskolc is located...
-based Attila FC, Nemzeti SC and Bocskai SC in Debrecen
Debrecen
Debrecen , is the second largest city in Hungary after Budapest. Debrecen is the regional centre of the Northern Great Plain region and the seat of Hajdú-Bihar county.- Name :...
and, according to some sources, he even spent the 1932–33 season at OSC Lille in France. He then returned to MTK briefly in 1933, and then signed for Attila FC again as player-manager in early 1934. Later that year he had in the same role at AC Nitra in Slovakia.
His first appearance for Hungary national team
Hungary national football team
The Hungary national football team represents Hungary in international football and is controlled by the Hungarian Football Federation....
came in April 1922 when he played as a right winger in a friendly against Austria
Austria national football team
The Austria national football team is the association football team that represents the country of Austria in international competition and is controlled by the Austrian Football Association ....
which ended in a 1–1 draw, and his first goal came in 7–1 win against Italy
Italy national football team
The Italy National Football Team , represents Italy in association football and is controlled by the Italian Football Federation , the governing body for football in Italy. Italy is the second most successful national team in the history of the World Cup having won four titles , just one fewer than...
in April 1924. That same year Opata was selected for the Hungary squad which competed in the 1924 Summer Olympics
1924 Summer Olympics
The 1924 Summer Olympics, officially known as the Games of the VIII Olympiad, were an international multi-sport event which was celebrated in 1924 in Paris, France...
in Paris
Paris
Paris is the capital and largest city in France, situated on the river Seine, in northern France, at the heart of the Île-de-France region...
, where they were considered as one of the favorites of the tournament
Football at the 1924 Summer Olympics
At the 1924 Summer Olympics held in Paris, Uruguay dominated the Football tournament winning the Gold.-Amateur Status:In 1921, the Belgium Football Association first allowed for payments to players for time lost from work; in the months that followed four other Associations permitted similar...
. In the first round they trashed Poland
Poland national football team
The Poland national football team represents Poland in association football and is controlled by the Polish Football Association, the governing body for football in Poland...
5–0 with Opata scoring a brace. However, in their second round match Hungary suffered a sensational 0–3 defeat to underdogs Egypt which ended their hopes of winning Olympic medals.
Opata continued to be a regular member of the national team until for the next three years and was used by managers in all positions in the attacking line, appearing in a total of 17 matches and scoring 6 goals between 1922 and 1927. After that period he was called up only once, three years later in the last game of the 1927–30 Central European International Cup against Italy in Budapest which they went on to lose 0–5.
Coaching career
As Opata had already started working as a player-manager in the mid-1930s he immediately took up coaching after his playing career had ended around 1935. He first managed Hungary at the 1936 Summer Olympics1936 Summer Olympics
The 1936 Summer Olympics, officially known as the Games of the XI Olympiad, was an international multi-sport event which was held in 1936 in Berlin, Germany. Berlin won the bid to host the Games over Barcelona, Spain on April 26, 1931, at the 29th IOC Session in Barcelona...
in Berlin
Berlin
Berlin is the capital city of Germany and is one of the 16 states of Germany. With a population of 3.45 million people, Berlin is Germany's largest city. It is the second most populous city proper and the seventh most populous urban area in the European Union...
where they got knocked out in the first round by Poland.
After that Opata went abroad and coached the Croatia
Croatia
Croatia , officially the Republic of Croatia , is a unitary democratic parliamentary republic in Europe at the crossroads of the Mitteleuropa, the Balkans, and the Mediterranean. Its capital and largest city is Zagreb. The country is divided into 20 counties and the city of Zagreb. Croatia covers ...
n side HAŠK
HAŠK
HAŠK was a Croatian football club established in Zagreb in 1903 which ceased operating in 1945. The club was one of the most successful sides in Zagreb and the Kingdom of Yugoslavia in the period between the two World Wars...
from 1937 to 1938 with whom he won their first Yugoslav First League
Yugoslav First League
The Yugoslav First League was the premier football league in the Kingdom of Yugoslavia and socialist Yugoslavia...
and only national title in 1938. Between 1941 and 1945 he coached CFR Cluj
CFR Cluj
CFR Cluj is a Romanian professional football club from the city of Cluj-Napoca in Transylvania, Romania. The club had spent most of their existence in the lower divisions, except for a spell in Divizia A in the 1970s, until they received significant financial backing from Árpád Pászkány in 2002...
in Romania
Romania
Romania is a country located at the crossroads of Central and Southeastern Europe, on the Lower Danube, within and outside the Carpathian arch, bordering on the Black Sea...
and in 1947 he signed for ITA Arad
FC UTA Arad
UTA Arad is a football club based in Arad, Romania, founded in 1945. During its history the club won the Romanian championship six times, only Steaua Bucharest, Dinamo Bucharest and Venus Bucharest winning more titles, and the Romanian Cup twice...
and won the 1946–47 Romanian championship. He then briefly returned to Hungary and had spells with Ferencváros TC, Újpest FC
Újpest FC
Újpest Football Club , earlier known as Újpesti TE and Újpesti Dózsa, is a Hungarian football club, based in Újpest, Budapest. The club's colours are purple and white...
and Csepel SC
Csepel SC
Csepel SC is a Hungarian sports club based in the XXI district of Budapest, Csepel, which is on an island in the Danube in the south of the city...
. In the so-called "Mighty Magyars
Golden Team
The Golden Team refers to the Hungary national football team of the 1950s. It is associated with several notable matches, including the "Match of the Century" against England in 1953, and the quarter-final , semi-final and final of the 1954 FIFA World Cup...
" era of the early 1950s Opata was a member of the national team's coaching staff and in that capacity helped them win gold in the 1952 Summer Olympics
1952 Summer Olympics
The 1952 Summer Olympics, officially known as the Games of the XV Olympiad, were an international multi-sport event held in Helsinki, Finland in 1952. Helsinki had been earlier given the 1940 Summer Olympics, which were cancelled due to World War II...
. He then coached the Polish club Górnik Zabrze
Górnik Zabrze
Górnik Zabrze is a Polish football club from Zabrze. The club has won numerous championships, and was a dominant force in the 1960s and 1980s. For now Górnik has the most titles in Poland. The club plays in white or dark blue - red kit, and is based at the Ernest Pohl Stadium...
and won the 1957 Polish league with them before retiring in 1958.
Honours
As player- Hungarian League (6): 1920–21, 1921–22, 1922–23, 1923–24, 1924–25, 1928–29
- Hungarian CupMagyar KupaThe Hungarian Cup is the Hungarian cup competition for football clubs. It has been incepted by the Hungarian Football Association, the Magyar Labdarúgó Szövetség in 1909, eight years after the commencement of the Hungarian League, the Nemzeti Bajnokság.Besides all of the professional clubs of...
(2): 1922–23, 1924–25
As manager
- Yugoslav LeagueYugoslav First LeagueThe Yugoslav First League was the premier football league in the Kingdom of Yugoslavia and socialist Yugoslavia...
(1): 1937–38 - Romanian LeagueLiga ILiga I, or in full, due to sponsorship reasons, Liga I Bergenbier, is the top division of the Romanian football league system. Before the 2006/2007 season, it was called Divizia A, but the name had to be changed following the discovery that someone else had registered the trademark "Divizia A"...
(1): 1946–47 - Polish League (1): 1957
External links
- Zoltán Opata at Sports-Reference.com