Following a heated clash during a fixture between Mura and Celje, Celje coach Zoran Zeljković and Mura club official Miran Rantaša engaged in a physical confrontation in Fazanerija. Zeljković received a red card for the incident, prompting differing accounts from both clubs regarding the sequence of events and responsibility for the escalation.
The Fazanerija Confrontation and Zeljković’s Red Card
The fixture between Mura and Celje concluded with a fiery post-match incident in Fazanerija involving Celje coach Zoran Zeljković and Mura club worker Miran Rantaša, who looks after the club’s substitution board and referee’s stoppage-time signals during home matches. What began as a verbal disagreement between the two men quickly escalated into a physical altercation. Staff members and players from both technical benches intervened to separate the pair before the situation deteriorated further, though not before Zeljković earned a red card.
The clash has since triggered a public exchange over accountability, with both clubs presenting starkly different perspectives on how the altercation unfolded.
Mura Defends Rantaša and Rejects Shift in Responsibility
In an official statement addressing the altercation, Mura defended its long-serving staff member, emphasizing that Rantaša has spent more than a decade as a dedicated employee without ever receiving a disciplinary sanction. The club asserted that Rantaša was seated quietly on the bench after the final whistle when Zeljković approached him and initiated both a verbal and physical confrontation.
In NŠ Mura we do not approve of insults or inappropriate communication, regardless of which side they come from. At the same time, we strongly reject attempts to shift attention from the physical assault exclusively to the prior verbal communication. Potential inappropriate words and the physical response are issues that must be treated separately. Words can explain the circumstances of the event, but they can in no way justify a physical attack. NŠ Mura, official club statement via Ekipa
While acknowledging that verbal friction occurred, the club maintained that potential inappropriate words and the physical response represent two distinct issues that cannot be weighed equally as mutual blame. Mura stated that it would extend full support to Rantaša to protect his dignity and safety, while adding that any inappropriate behavior from its own representatives would not be overlooked.
Zeljković Points to Prior History and Family Insults
Providing his own perspective on the incident, Zeljković explained that the friction with Rantaša was not an isolated event. According to the Celje manager, he experienced similar difficulties with the Mura staff member during his previous tenure coaching Koper.
Zeljković stated that Rantaša had directed insults toward the family members of the visiting coaching staff. While maintaining that he is prepared to tolerate abuse originating from the stands, the Celje coach argued that such behavior from an official club representative crosses a line. He also expressed frustration at being the only individual penalized with a red card immediately following the altercation.
