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Yugoslavia's greatest talent starves and suffers from severe illness: 'People, if you knew what I bathe in'
🇭🇷 Croatia /Culture & Society

Yugoslavia's greatest talent starves and suffers from severe illness: 'People, if you knew what I bathe in'

From Večernji List · () Croatian

Translated from Croatian, summarized and contextualized by DistantNews.

At a glance

In-depth Named sources Context piece
  • Miroslav Živković, once a highly touted Yugoslav football talent, now lives in poverty and suffers from a rare disease.
  • He receives a meager pension of about 130 euros and lives in unfinished housing with his wife.
  • Živković battled porphyria, a metabolic disorder, after his promising career was cut short by illness and displacement during the Yugoslav wars.

Miroslav Živković, once hailed as one of Yugoslavia's greatest football talents, is now facing severe hardship, living in poverty and battling a serious illness. His current reality stands in stark contrast to his promising youth, where he played alongside future stars like Vladimir Jugović and Siniša Mihajlović.

I live on a shameful pension of 15,000 dinars (about 130 euros). My wife works, and we survive on her salary and my pension.

— Miroslav ŽivkovićDescribing his current financial situation.

Živković, born in Belgrade in 1970, began his football journey in Novi Sad with Vojvodina's youth teams. He gained international recognition in 1985, playing for the Yugoslav cadet team at Wembley and being named Man of the Match. He recalled the moment, saying, "Bobby Charlton approached me and told me I was a genius talent. Those are moments you don't forget."

His career trajectory shifted in the early 1990s amid the Yugoslav wars, forcing him to leave the country. He moved to Greece, playing for a second-division team, Naoussa. However, his health began to deteriorate rapidly due to overexertion in training and saunas. "I started to feel like I was dying," he recounted.

We live in Irig, in difficult conditions, the house is not finished, there is no bathroom or shower. The house is unfinished, built of brick, but nothing is plastered... Things people donated to us were stolen. We are practically living in a barrel.

— Miroslav ŽivkovićDetailing the poor living conditions he and his wife endure.

After facing misdiagnoses in Serbia and Greece, Živković finally received a diagnosis of porphyria, a rare metabolic disorder, in the United States. This debilitating illness has physically exhausted him, preventing him from continuing his career. He now lives a quiet life with his wife in Irig, struggling on his pension of approximately 130 euros per month, supplemented by his wife's income. Their home remains unfinished, lacking basic amenities like a bathroom and shower.

Bobby Charlton approached me and told me I was a genius talent. Those are moments you don't forget.

— Miroslav ŽivkovićRecalling a significant moment from his youth football career at Wembley.

"We live in Irig, in difficult conditions, the house is not finished, there is no bathroom or shower. The house is unfinished, built of brick, but nothing is plastered... Things people donated to us were stolen. We are practically living in a barrel," Živković shared, highlighting the dire circumstances. Despite his physical struggles, he strives to maintain a positive outlook, finding solace in his passion for animals and photography, fields in which he previously achieved recognition.

I started to feel like I was dying.

— Miroslav ŽivkovićDescribing the onset of his health problems.
DistantNews Editorial

Originally published by Večernji List in Croatian. Translated, summarized, and contextualized by our editorial team with added local perspective. Read our editorial standards.

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