Sports Nicknames - Piksi

Dragan Stojkovic was a classic midfield playmaker who could control, dominate, and manipulate the speed of the football match with his creativity and exceptional passing ability.



Stojkovic started his club career with the Yugoslav First League team and his home side Radnicki Nis in 1981. However, his prime period was with Red Star Belgrade between 1986 and 1990. During this period, his team featured in the semi-finals of the UEFA Cup and won the Yugoslavia First League twice. He played a total of 120 games for the club and scored 54 goals in them. He was named the Yugoslav League MVP in the years 1988 and 1989.

In 1990, he was transferred to Olympique Marseille for a transfer fee of 5.5 million Pounds. He played for Marseille between 1990 and 1994, winning the Champions League with the club in 1993. Marseille also loaned him to the Italian Club Verona for a few games in the 1991-92 season.

Year 1994 brought another major transfer in Stojkovic's career to the Japanese Club Nagoya Grampus Eight. He played for the team untill the end of his career in 2001. He was named the MVP in the J-league in 1995. In the same year, he was named the Japanese Footballer of the Year. The team won the premier title of the Emperor's Cup in 1995 and 1999.


Nickname:

Piksi

Dragan Stojkovic was called "Piksi" in Yugoslavia ever since he gave his first high profile interview for the local sports weekly magazine Tempo, in which he revealed that he was called Piksi after a cartoon character that he loved to watch and never missed an episode of.

During his time in the J-league, every time he scored a goal the fans would chant "Ale Piksi," showing the love, the support, the commemoration, and the adoration he enjoyed among his Japanese Fans.


National Team:

On an international level, Stojkovic appeared in a total of 84 games and scored 15 times. His international career started against France in 1983 while he played for the Yugoslavia National Team in the UEFA Euro 1984, 1984 Summer Olympics, 1988 Summer Olympics, and the 1990 FIFA World Cup. Later, he was recalled to the National Team for the 1998 FIFA World Cup and UEFA Euro 2000. His last international appearance came against Japan in July 2001. His most notable achievement with the national team was the bronze medal at the 1984 Summer Olympics. He was also part of the Football World Cup All-Star Team in 1990.


Post Retirement Life and Current Role:

Since his retirement in 2001, he has worked as a broadcaster as well as a team manager. He is the current manager of the Serbian National Football Team, working with the team since 2021.


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