Dragan's Professional Career — 17 Years Across Four Countries
To understand what Dragan brings to private coaching sessions in London, it helps to understand the professional career that precedes it. Dragan spent 17 years competing as a professional striker — not at grassroots or semi-professional level, but at the highest level of professional football in multiple countries across Europe and Asia.
What 17 Years as a Professional Footballer Actually Brings to Coaching
The question parents and players most often ask is a reasonable one — does playing professionally actually make someone a better coach? The answer is nuanced. Playing experience alone does not make a great coach. But playing experience at the highest level, combined with a UEFA A coaching licence, a Personal Trainer Fitness licence, 10 years of coaching experience and active roles at West Ham United Foundation and RC Lens London — that combination produces something genuinely rare in a private coaching environment.
Here is what Dragan's professional playing career specifically brings to coaching sessions at Hyde Park, North Greenwich Central Park and Battersea Park:
Coach Dragan is definitely one of the best coaches in London. He is very experienced not just as a coach but also as a player — so he knows exactly how to help players improve. I would highly recommend Coach Dragan.
Where Sessions Take Place — Three London Training Venues
Dragan provides personal football coaching sessions across three of London's most iconic and accessible parks and open spaces — giving players from across Central London, South East London and the surrounding areas a conveniently located training option close to home or work.
Who Benefits Most from Training with a Former Professional
Dragan works with players of all ages and abilities at Hyde Park, Greenwich and Battersea Park — from young children who are just beginning their football journey through to grassroots players, academy footballers and adult players competing at semi-professional level. But there are specific player profiles for whom the combination of professional playing experience and UEFA A coaching qualification makes a particularly significant difference:
Adult players looking to genuinely improve
Adult players who have played grassroots football for years and hit a ceiling in their development benefit enormously from a coach who understands professional-level technical execution and can identify and correct the habitual technical flaws that grassroots coaching has never addressed. Dragan's sessions are particularly popular with adult 5-a-side and 11-a-side players in London who want to make a genuine, measurable step up in their technical quality and overall performance.
Players preparing for trials and academy evaluation
For players in London targeting academy evaluation — whether at West Ham United, Chelsea, Arsenal, Millwall or any other academy in the capital — training with a coach who currently works at West Ham United Foundation and RC Lens London provides a direct line of sight into what academy coaches are evaluating. Dragan's innovative sessions are designed around the attributes — technical, physical, tactical and psychological — that professional football environments assess most rigorously.
Players who want to understand the game at a deeper level
Parents often describe a moment after a session with Dragan when their child's understanding of football visibly shifts — they begin to see the game differently, read situations faster and make more intelligent decisions on the pitch. This is the direct product of coaching from someone who spent 17 years thinking about football as a professional — not just executing it, but understanding it at a level that most coaches have never experienced.
What Players and Parents Say
"Dragan coaches our 12 year old and we highly recommend him. Dragan is a very good at what he does. Our son has had 2 sessions so far and we have seen a boost to his game. He has been able to apply what he has learnt already in matches with great results. Our boy loves his sessions with Dragan and finds them beneficial. We highly recommend Dragan."
"My 10 year-old daughter can’t wait for every single training session with Dragan. He brings so much energy, positivity, and encouragement that she leaves every practice smiling and more confident than ever. The progress she’s made both in her skills and her self belief is amazing. Dragan is truly a fantastic coach and I would highly recommend him to anyone looking for an inspiring and motivating football mentor."
Dragan is an extraordinary coach who works on the physical as well as mental aspect. He’s patient, energetic and engaging. Clearly very experienced. A true gem. I particularly appreciated his thorough analysis, pinpointing all the problems and assessing them carefully. My only regret is that we didn't find him earlier."
Areas Served Across London
With three training venues spread across Central and South East London, Dragan's coaching is accessible for players from a wide area of the capital:
Train with a Former Professional Footballer in London
Dragan provides UEFA A Licensed private football coaching sessions at Hyde Park, North Greenwich Central Park and Battersea Park. 100+ verified five-star reviews. All ages and abilities.
View Dragan's Coaching Page →Frequently Asked Questions
Common questions from players and parents across London considering private football coaching with Dragan.
Where does Dragan provide football coaching in London?
Dragan provides private football coaching sessions at three London venues — Hyde Park (W2) in Central London, North Greenwich Central Park (SE10) in South East London and Battersea Park (SW11) in South West London. Weekday morning sessions are available at all three venues. Weekday afternoon and evening sessions are available at North Greenwich Central Park. Saturday group sessions for players aged 9 to 13 are available at Hyde Park. Contact Dragan directly via his Coachability coaching page to discuss availability and arrange your first session.
Does playing professional football make someone a better coach?
Playing experience alone does not make a great coach — there are excellent coaches who never played professionally and former professionals who coach poorly. What makes the combination of professional playing experience and elite coaching qualification so valuable is when they are genuinely integrated — when a coach can explain what it feels like to execute technical actions under professional pressure, can identify why a player's technique will fail at higher speeds, and can coach mental resilience from genuine experience of performing in high-stakes professional matches. Dragan's 17 years of professional experience, combined with his UEFA A licence, Personal Trainer Fitness licence and current professional coaching roles at West Ham Foundation and RC Lens London, represents exactly that integration.
What age groups does Dragan coach at Hyde Park, Greenwich and Battersea?
Dragan provides private football coaching sessions for players of all ages and abilities across all three London venues — from young children through to grassroots players, academy footballers and adult players. His Saturday group sessions at Hyde Park are specifically for players aged 9 to 13. Individual 1-to-1 sessions are available for players of all ages at all three venues. Contact Dragan directly to discuss the most appropriate session format and venue for your player's age and level.
Is personal football coaching available at Battersea Park?
Yes — Dragan provides private football coaching sessions at Battersea Park (SW11) on weekday mornings. Battersea Park is ideal for players based in Battersea, Clapham, Chelsea, Wandsworth, Vauxhall and surrounding South West London postcodes. Contact Dragan via his Coachability coaching page to discuss session availability at Battersea Park and to arrange your first session.
What makes Dragan different from other football coaches in London?
Dragan is one of a very small number of private football coaches in London who combines 17 years of international professional football experience with a UEFA A coaching licence, a Personal Trainer Fitness licence, a Masters Degree in Marketing and Business, current professional coaching roles at West Ham United Foundation and RC Lens London, and more than 100 verified five-star reviews. This combination of credentials and experience is genuinely unique in London's personal coaching market — and it produces a coaching environment that is qualitatively different to what most other coaches in the capital can offer.
Is there a group football coaching session at Hyde Park?
Yes — Dragan runs a Saturday morning group coaching session at Hyde Park specifically for players aged 9 to 13, starting at 10am. The session focuses on technical development, football intelligence and competitive small-sided games in a positive and professional training environment. Places are limited — contact Dragan directly via his Coachability coaching page to check availability and reserve a place.
Is Dragan's coaching suitable for adult players in London?
Yes — Dragan's innovative sessions are specifically designed to be suitable and genuinely beneficial for adult players of all abilities. His background as a former professional footballer makes him particularly well placed to coach adult players — he understands the specific technical, physical and tactical needs of adult football and designs sessions accordingly. Adult 5-a-side and 11-a-side players in London consistently report measurable improvements in technical quality, decision making and overall match performance within a few weeks of consistent coaching sessions at Hyde Park, Greenwich or Battersea Park.
What is RC Lens London and what does coaching there mean for Dragan's sessions?
RC Lens is a professional French football club competing in Ligue 1 — the top division of French football. RC Lens London is the club's London-based development and coaching programme. Dragan's current role as head coach at RC Lens London means his coaching methodology and sessions are informed by the standards, philosophy and approach of a current Ligue 1 professional football club — providing players who train with him in London with access to coaching that reflects professional French football development methodology alongside his West Ham United Foundation experience.
