Dževad Prekazi

Dževad Prekazi (Serbian Cyrillic: Џевад Прекази, Albanian: Xhevat Prekazi, Turkish: Cevat Prekazi; born 18 August 1957) is a Yugoslav former professional footballer who played as a midfielder.

Club career

Born in Titova Mitrovica, Prekazi made his first football steps at his local club Remont, being registered for their youth team in early 1974. He soon gained attention as one of the most promising young talents in Yugoslav football and signed with Partizan in December 1974. With the Crno-beli, Prekazi won the Yugoslav First League three times (1975–76, 1977–78, and 1982–83).

In the 1984 winter transfer window, Prekazi switched to fellow Yugoslav First League club Hajduk Split. He spent about a year at Poljud and won the 1983–84 Yugoslav Cup, before moving to the United States and joining the Baltimore Blast of the Major Indoor Soccer League.

In the summer of 1985, Prekazi returned to Europe and signed with Turkish side Galatasaray. He played for the club over the next six and a half years, collecting 185 league appearances and scoring 40 goals, while helping them win back-to-back championship titles in 1986–87 and 1987–88.

In late 1991, Prekazi departed Galatasaray and joined Altay until the end of the 1991–92 season. He also briefly played for Bakırköyspor in the fall of 1992. After returning to Yugoslavia, Prekazi ended his playing career with Trudbenik in the Serbian League North.

International career

Prekazi represented Yugoslavia at the 1976 UEFA European Under-18 Championship. He was also capped for Yugoslavia at under-21 level.

Post-playing career

After hanging up his boots, Prekazi served as manager of Železnik on two occasions. He also worked in the youth setups at Sinđelić Beograd, OFK Beograd, and Partizan.

Personal life

Born to Kosovo Albanian parents, Prekazi identifies as Yugoslav. He also holds Turkish citizenship. His older brother, Ljuan, also played for Partizan.