Safet Sušic

Safet Sušic is one of the greatest legends in the history of Paris Saint-Germain, an elegant playmaker who led PSG to its first trophies.

663

Games

206

Goals

Assists

Trophies

1971 FK Krivaja (YOU)

1972/82 FK Sarajevo (YOU) 244 matches, 97 goals

(Yugoslav League: 221 matches, 85 goals)

(Yugoslav Cup: 15 matches, 8 goals)

(UEFA Cup: 8 matches, 4 goals)

1982/91 Paris Saint-Germain (FRA) 345 matches, 85 goals

(French League: 287 matches, 64 goals)

(French Cup: 42 matches, 18 goals)

(European Champion Clubs' Cup: 2 matches)

(UEFA Cup Winners' Cup: 6 matches, 1 goal)

(UEFA Cup: 8 matches, 3 goals)

1991/92 Red Star (FRA) 20 matches, 3 goals

(French Division 2 Championship: 16 matches, 3 goals)

(French Cup: 4 matches)

With the National Team :

54 caps, 21 goals

(Friendly matches: 17 caps, 10 goals)

(World Cup Qualifiers: 12 caps, 5 goals)

(World Cup: 8 caps, 1 goal)

(Euro Qualifiers: 11 caps, 3 goals)

(Euro: 3 caps)

(Balkan Cup: 3 caps, 2 goals)

First cap: October 5, 1977 against Hungary (3-4)

Last cap: November 14, 1990 against Denmark (2-0)

Safet Sušic

Born April 13, 1955 in Zavidovici (BOS)

Bosnian, Attacking-Midfielder, 1m74

Nicknames: Magic Sušic, "Papet"

The jewel of Sarajevo

Safet Sušic was born on April 13, 1955, in Zavidovici, Yugoslavia. He began his professional career at a very early age, at just 16 years old, with the small club FK Krivaja. It was ultimately Yugoslavia's biggest club, FK Sarajevo, that would eventually acquire the promising young player.

Becoming increasingly noticed in the Yugoslav league, Safet stayed in Sarajevo for a long time, until 1982, to be exact, for 11 years. A legend of this club, he helped his team finish runner-up in Yugoslavia in 1980.

A transfer problem

He eventually joined one of the best national teams in the world in 1977, Yugoslavia. He participated with his country in the 1982 and 1990 World Cups. He also played a part in Euro 1984, three collective failures for a talented team.

During his career, he was scouted by numerous Italian clubs, notably Inter Milan and Torino. The player then signed a contract with Inter Milan, but Torino came back with a bigger financial offer, and the player signed with Torino. Inter immediately filed a complaint, and the player was suspended for one year in Italy.

It was then that the then president of Paris Saint-Germain decided to step in and offer the Yugoslav player a move to the club in the French capital. The Yugoslav federation blocked the transfer until December, but he signed permanently with PSG at the end of the year.

The PSG playmaker

Arriving in France as a league star, he imposed his pace and talent on the public. Never injured, the fabulous coach would become a living legend of the club. In 287 matches for the capital club, he scored 64 goals and provided 61 assists in the French league alone.

A player in big matches, he produced a superb performance in the 1983 Coupe de France final. While PSG were trailing 2-1 against FC Nantes, he scored a vital goal with a 20-meter shot. He then provided an assist that gave his club a 3-2 victory. The attacking midfielder then secured the club's second Coupe de France title.

He would break a record a year later, on September 22, 1984, when he provided five assists in a single match against Bastia in a 7-1 victory. With PSG gaining more and more prominence in the French media and football worlds, Sušić won the first French championship in PSG's history in 1986.

Irregular but so good when it wanted to be

Deemed inconsistent, the player nicknamed "Magic Sušić" was criticized for his tendency to choose the matches in which he gave his all. Excessively wasteful in his game, sometimes dribbling unnecessarily, he was benched during the 1987/88 season, a season when the club was fighting to stay up.

Criticized by his then-coach, Houllier, for not defending enough, the Parisian public didn't give up on their star player and was eager to see him back on the pitch regularly. Reinstated in the squad with five matches remaining in the season, the playmaker helped his team win the last three matches of the season and ensure their survival in the top flight of French football. He also scored a goal in the match against Olympique de Marseille, a 2-1 victory for PSG on the 36th day.

Having become a regular starter for the club again despite tensions with his then-coach, Safet Sušic was aging and lost his place in the Yugoslavia national team in the early 1990s. He played his last match for his country on November 14, 1990, against Denmark in a 2-0 victory. In total, he scored 21 goals in 54 appearances, truly impressive statistics.

Then in 1991, he left PSG and joined another club in the region, Red Star. However, unusually, the player suffered a series of injuries in the French second division. He then retired in 1992 at the age of 37.