SPORT / SPORTS
Slavlje 2010. godine kada je sa Nagojom osvojio šampionat Japana Celebrating in 2010, when he won the J1 League with Nagoya
me to prove to everyone that Serbs know how to play football and that they we how to play good football. That‘s why I accepted.” In Japan and China you worked with foot- ballers of different nationalities. Now you have 30 Serbian citizens in one place? “Yes, I‘m awaited by 30 heads, 30 individuals, with different mentalities... You need to be wise and smart enough to bring order to all of that and to cre- ate a healthy team that will think the same, work the same and fight the same. It generally isn‘t easy with people. A hundred people, a hundred wonders. And that isn‘t only the case with us. They are all like that, in France, Italy, Turkey... There is a battle of opin- ions, attitudes... I believe in success, and my job is to convince them to believe me.” Maybe they‘ll be scared when they see their idol from the pitch in front of them, now in the role of manager? “There is no reason to be afraid. I‘m not seeking military discipline. We have a great responsibility be- cause we represent our country. We must be aware of the situation and the challenges. Joining the national team isn‘t joining because of friendly matches, fami- ly, friends... Their arrival here is directed towards one goal: to be as good as possible and to achieve a result. The goal is to make it to the World Cup in Qatar, not to play because we have to, but to play as we should.
To play modern football. I won‘t ban them from doing things, like using their phones for example. We live in a modern world ... I‘m interested in their behaviour towards the shirt, the group and me. For them to re- spect what I say and ask for. I don‘t like to repeat my- self twice, rather for there to be understanding when I first say something. When there is repetition, we en- ter the realm of tedium and lost time. We bear a cross of responsibility towards the nation who‘s watching us. It is very important that those people, when they meet you on the street tomorrow, recognise and greet you like a winner, not like a loser.” We can shift from football to lighter topics. You have lived in France, Italy, Japan, China... “Considering the job I had, I was a footballer and now I‘m a coach, it is somehow normal to change en- vironments. One great experience, in any case, is to have that chance to do what you love and to get to know some other cultures, peoples, customs... That is a great satisfaction for life. Me and my family al- ways found it nice, wherever we were. Japan is specif- ic in itself, and there we spent a beautiful period of our lives. That was also the case in China, the beautiful city of Gwangju, a modern China, a nice experience. I don‘t even need to mention France, an irresistible country. But then again, when you draw a line some- where, you always feel the best in your own country.
108 | Fudbal » Football
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