Dejan Stanković has returned to the bench of the Red Star Football Club and has taken over the position of head of the professional staff of the Serbian champions for the second time. In his address at the press conference, Stanković pointed out that Vladan Milojević left behind a good team.
The former captain and coach of the Red-and-Whites led the club in the period from December 2019 to August 2022, which marked his first coaching mandate at Zvezda, as well as the first independent one in his coaching career.
During his first mandate, Stanković achieved significant results on the domestic and European stage. Under his leadership, Red Star won three Serbian championship titles, two national Cup trophies, and secured participation in the group stages of the Europa League.
Stanković first took over Red Star on December 21, 2019, and already in his first season as head of the professional staff, the Red-and-Whites won the Serbian championship title, with Stanković reaching the first trophy of his coaching career with a convincing 14-point advantage over Partizan.
In the 2020/2021 season, Red Star dominated the domestic championship, going undefeated. The Red-and-Whites achieved 35 victories in 38 matches and scored a record 114 goals, and the season was crowned by winning the Serbian Cup after a victory over Partizan.
On the European stage, in the same season, Red Star secured a place in the knockout phase of the Europa League, passing a group featuring Hoffenheim, Slovan Liberec, and Gent. They finished the competition in the round of 32, where they were eliminated by Milan due to the away goals rule after the two-legged tie ended with a total score of 3:3.
Stanković, a Belgrade native and one of the most famous players in the club’s history, also built a recognizable style of play and result stability as a coach. Following the parting with Vladan Milojević, the club’s management decided to again place their trust in a coach who knows the environment and the club’s ambitions well.
The new professional staff also includes associates from abroad with the aim of improving work and preparing the team for the remainder of the season. The first assistant to Dejan Stanković will be Nenad Sakić. The goalkeeper coach will be Pierluigi Brivio, the conditioning coach Federico Pannoncini, and the analyst Vincenzo Sasso. Stanković will lead the team through winter preparations and the continuation of competitive obligations in the domestic championship and Europe.
Dejan Stanković’s return to the “Rajko Mitić” stadium caused great attention from the fans, who remember him as a coach under whose leadership Zvezda had result security.
Terzić: Milojević will surely return one day The general director of Red Star, Zvezdan Terzić, in his introductory address to journalists at the press conference, thanked Vladan Milojević, the until recently coach.
“He has left temporarily; the doors of Red Star always remain open to him, and he will surely return one day,” stated Terzić.
The head of Zvezda noted that the Red-and-Whites had a turbulent season in which they did not secure a place in the league part of the Champions League.
“Then we said that maybe even the Europa League is not bad for Zvezda. And so it was. Now we are in a situation where we can secure a place in the top 8 in the upcoming matches, but we had some ‘coughs’ in the domestic championship. Whether we underestimated the domestic championship or something else, it is up to us to make an analysis. In these eight, nine years when we were winning the title, it never happened that Zvezda wasted 15 points. Practically, we gave them away. We should not deal with Partizan or anyone else; we must turn to ourselves and not allow such things anymore,” Terzić emphasized.
Terzić stated that Milojević offered his resignation on several occasions due to dissatisfaction during the season.
“Zvezda, as a big club, has rarely changed a coach during the season. Milojević gave a lot to Zvezda and the least that was expected from us was to reject all those resignations. At his request, we parted ways. He said that maybe a new energy, some new face needs to enter the locker room. He felt that there was a flat line among the players. We parted ways as a coach like Milojević deserves, who gave so much to Red Star,” Terzić added.
Stanković: We have a good, strong team
The new coach of Red Star, Dejan Stanković, at the beginning of his address, thanked Vladan Milojević for everything he has done for the club.
“He brought many beautiful things, a lot of joy. Now, with six or seven years of experience, I know how it is. I know how much Zvezda consumes, grinds, but how much it knows how to be beautiful and joyful. That is Red Star and we are here to respond to all demands,” Dejan Stanković said at the press conference.
Stanković added that he reached an agreement with Zvezda’s leaders in a minute regarding taking over the team.
“There is no choosing just one trophy or competition. I am here to respond to all demands. We have a good, strong team. We did ‘cough’ a bit, as the direttore said, but those boys started in June and it can happen that in November or December power and motivation are lost, but we will change all that,” stated Stanković.
Zvezda’s coach said that he has changed a lot in the period after leaving Zvezda in 2022.
“A lot of time has passed, I had various experiences – some difficult, some beautiful, some under great pressure… Surely I have more experience. We will see what I will bring, what the pitch will say, how the boys will accept me and I them. It is certain that it will be okay. It is known what Zvezda is, what it carries, and the pitch is the only measure. We start working as early as the 3rd and the pitch will give us all the answers, both to me and to you,” said Zvezda’s coach.
Stanković said that he will not ask anything from the players that is not normal.
“The salaries are big, they are professionals, everyone must do what they are paid for. If they don’t do that, they will write themselves off. The pitch will show everything in the end,” Stanković pointed out and added that he will count on all players in the current roster.
Stanković specifically reflected on the influence of Marko Arnautović, with whom he shared a locker room during his playing days.
“He rejoiced more than he played – we were winning and winning back then, and he was first in line for photos… But I understand him. He took the ‘pelcer’ (the seed), made a top-tier career. I have been in touch with him; his arrival was an extraordinary move by Zvezda. I am sorry he didn’t arrive completely fit, but his talent, character, and charisma are needed by Red Star. I have been in touch with him, as well as with several players,” said Stanković.
From the Red Star bench, in his first mandate, Stanković left on August 26, 2022, after elimination by Maccabi Haifa in the Champions League qualification playoffs in the 2022/2023 season.
“That is a bone in the throat that stayed with me… In those moments I thought that was the chance and I didn’t know if I would ever return to Zvezda. But you make plans so that God laughs at you. And overnight everything turns around and I return to Red Star. I hope I will have a chance to erase that comma. That is my dream, that is my goal, probably the biggest. And it won’t be easy to fulfill that goal, I know that. A lot needs to be passed, some more situations need to align to get the opportunity to erase that comma,” the new coach of the Red-and-Whites emphasized.
At the conference, Stanković also reflected on Siniša Mihajlović, the former Red Star footballer.
“Miha said: ‘Let Deki stay for 10 years, let him keep my place and then I will return.’ In my return, there is also Siniša Mihajlović. So I will do my best to justify everything that ‘Dad’ thought about me,” said Stanković.
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“Home is home, Zvezda is Zvezda”
Stanković then spoke about the pressure and influence of Red Star, pointing out that responsibilities cannot be measured.
“Spartak is a big club, but I cannot measure them. Home is home, Zvezda is Zvezda. Spartak is indeed a serious club, the biggest in Russia, with a serious history and an army of fans, but it is totally different at home. That emotion, love, and responsibility cannot be measured,” Stanković added at the presentation.
At the end of the autumn part of the Superliga, Zvezda is in second place with 45 points, one less than the first-placed Partizan, while in the Europa League it is currently 17th with 10 points from six matches. The next rival, and also the first in the following year, will be Malmö in the seventh round of the Europa League on January 22.
“Vlada left a nice situation. A few small things are needed to be in the 16, two wins for the round of 16… A beautiful situation, a beautiful challenge – I can’t wait. The ball is round, I learned that; one set piece, foul, or throw-in can change everything. But, we are in a good situation and I can’t wait for the game to start,” Milojević noted regarding the competition in the Europa League.
Zvezda’s strategist also spoke about the formation in which he played with the team in the first mandate.
“In Europe, I used three at the back a lot, to thicken the defense a bit and be more stable. We had creators, boys who could resolve games with one move. We’ll see. This team is made to play with four; I wouldn’t touch anything there for now. Changing the formation requires buying, changing player profiles… At this moment, Zvezda is well-set and organized, has quality players and I won’t touch anything there. We are starting with four at the back,” Stanković states.
Stanković commented on the current state of the Superliga table, praising Partizan’s results.
“Surely there were huge changes with them. They focused on the kids; those kids showed quality and organization. They have a point more; last time it was plus 11 for us, but in the locker room it was as if we had 0. I didn’t want to waste what was given to me. Now it is the same; we start from zero, there are many games, enough for everyone, and it is important that we start strong from the first moment,” Stanković underlined.
After the New Year holidays, the Red Star player roster will gather, and the start of preparations is scheduled for January 3. The leaders of the Red-and-Whites have agreed on a test with Salzburg, which will check the form of Dejan Stanković’s team on January 15, seven days before the duel with Malmö, during preparations in Turkey.
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Source: RTS, Photo: Bane T. Stojanovic / ATAImages