Milovan Jakšić

Who is Milovan Jakšić?

Milovan Jakšić was a Serbian football goalkeeper.

Remembered mostly as "El Grande Milovan", the nickname he earned for his excellent saves in the game that Yugoslavia won against Brasil in the First World Cup in Uruguay 1930 FIFA World Cup. He is considered as one of the major contributors for Yugoslavia reaching the semi-finals in that tournament.

Being of medium stature, but very strong physically, Milovan's main characteristics were his bravure and excellent reflexes. Milovan spent most of his career playing in BASK Belgrade, named SK Soko before 1931, where he played until 1939. The only exceptions were the Czechoslovak SK Slavia Praha, where Milovan Jaksic played a few months of the 1934-35 season, and SK Ljubljana at the end of his career.

Milovan Jaksic played a total of nine matches for the Yugoslavia national football team. His debut was on April 13, 1930, in a friendly game against Bulgaria in Belgrade, a 6-1 win, and his fairway match was on September 2, 1934, in another friendly game, this time in Prague, against Czechoslovakia, a 3-1 loss.