Sergej Jakirović

Jakirović played in the Croatian First League for Neretva, Istra, Kamen Ingrad, Zagreb and Rijeka. He also had a couple of spells in European leagues, playing for Bulgarian side CSKA Sofia and SK Austria Kärnten in the Austrian league.

In August 2005, in preparation for the upcoming four 2006 FIFA World Cup qualification matches, Bosnia and Herzegovina national football team manager Blaž Slišković named Jakirović to the squad. Jakirović made his debut for the Bosnia and Herzegovina national football team in an August 2005 friendly match away against Estonia. He ultimately earned a total of five caps, four of which were in World Cup qualification Group 7, including a February 2006 friendly against Japan, which was his final international match.

Early career

Between 2017 and 2018, Jakirović managed Sesvete in the Croatian Second League. On 20 June 2018, Jakirović was appointed manager of Croatian First League club Gorica, which he led to fifth place in the 2018–19 season. On 24 February 2020, following a 6–0 loss to Hajduk Split, he was sacked by the club. On 23 April 2020, Jakirović was named new manager of Slovenian PrvaLiga club Maribor, replacing Darko Milanič. He was sacked on 29 August 2020 after getting eliminated by Northern Irish team Coleraine in the 2020–21 UEFA Europa League first qualifying round.

Zrinjski Mostar

On 28 December 2020, Jakirović became the new manager of Bosnian Premier League club Zrinjski Mostar, signing a three-and-a-half-year contract with the club. In his first game in charge, Zrinjski beat Krupa in a league match on 27 February 2021. He oversaw his first loss as Zrinjski manager in a Bosnian Cup game against Sarajevo, played on 10 March 2021. On 20 January 2022, Jakirović signed a two-and-a-half-year contract extension until 2024. After beating Radnik Bijeljina on 19 March 2022, Zrinjski broke the all-time Bosnian Premier League record with 13 consecutive victories, overpassing the previous record of 12 victories set by Željezničar in the 2011–12 season. On 16 April 2022, he managed Zrinjski to a 4–0 win against Sarajevo, clinching the club's record seventh league title seven rounds before the end of the season. Subsequently, he was named the Bosnian Premier…

Born in Mostar, Yugoslavia, modern-day Bosnia and Herzegovina, Jakirović grew up in Metković, Croatia, and has both Bosnian and Croatian citizenship. His father, Enver Jakirović, was a goalkeeper for NK Neretva. His son Leon is also a professional footballer. Before leaving Croatia, Jakirović was very active and highly successful in Croatian veterans' football. He made a total of 29 appearances and scored 23 goals at various humanitarian and anniversary matches involving the Croatian national football and futsal teams. He is a multiple-time Croatian champion in club veterans football and futsal, and was twice named the best player of the Croatian Indoor Veterans Football Championship, first with the veterans of Sesvete in 2015, and the second time with the veterans of Neretva in 2018.