Now Polish legionnaire

Ex-LASK player Balic: “Wanted to get away from all the drama!”

Husein Balić

(Bild: krone.tv/Hannes Maierhofer, Krone KREATIV)

It wasn't so long ago that his name was even making the rounds in the media in England and Scotland, and he was also called up to the ÖFB team thanks to his strong performances at LASK. But after a few injuries, a change of coach and a general overhaul at LASK, he has made a fresh start and signed up with two-time champions ŁKS Łódź in Poland. krone.at visited Husein Balić in Poland and returned with a witty two-part interview with the 28-year-old - here you can find part 1, part 2 will follow tomorrow ...

krone.at: Białystok instead of Vienna, Chorzów instead of Klagenfurt or Łódź instead of Linz - Poland is probably not a typical destination for an Austro footballer. What motivated you to leave Austria behind and sign up in Poland?
Husein Balić: Every footballer has to make difficult decisions at some point in their career. And after some things happened at LASK, I decided to leave the club in the winter and make a fresh start. The main reason for Poland was that I really wanted to stay in Europe and not do anything too exotic ...

krone.at: Would there have been concrete opportunities for something exotic?
Balić: Yes, there were the typical countries (laughs)... But I didn't want to end my career at the age of 28 with such a step. Unfortunately, you never know what's going to happen there, whether you'll continue after that or whether that's your last stop. That's why I wanted to take another shot at a European league, which has a good standing - but where I'm away from everything that's happened and away from all the "drama" of the past.

Husein Balić

(Bild: krone.tv/Hannes Maierhofer, Krone KREATIV)

krone.at: I suspect that not many Austrian soccer fans know where Łódź is - and that even fewer know that ŁKS Łódź even exists. Be honest: did you know about the club beforehand?
Balić: To be honest, no. The huge clubs like Legia Warsaw or Pogoń Szczecin, of course you know them ... (ponders) Łódź is a very pleasant city, in the heart of Poland, I feel very comfortable here, my family feels very comfortable too. From the very first talks, apart from the table situation then and now, it was a great fit. I simply had a good feeling.

krone.at: How did the switch come about? What made you decide to embark on the adventure in Poland?
Balić: Specifically, it happened in such a way that contact was first made with the club and then the sports director of ŁKS Łódź and the advisor who arranged the whole thing called me. Another contact was Adi Mehremić, who I played with once in St. Pölten and who also played for Wisła Kraków in Poland. And of course Efthymios Koulouris, with whom I already had very good contact at LASK. Both immediately raved about Poland, the league and the quality of the league. As an Austrian, you always have, how should I put it, a bit of a prejudiced attitude towards the eastern states - but it's very similar here to Austria. I can honestly say that.

krone.at: You're not the only Austrian playing in Poland, there are three more of our compatriots active in the Ekstraklasa alone. Did you ask any of them about the league or the club beforehand? For example, your former St. Poelten colleague David Stec, who is currently playing in the 2nd division?
Balić: No, I only had contact with David after my transfer. He told me about the most beautiful cities in Poland and the best places I absolutely had to visit with my family. I am very grateful for this information. Of course, it's always nice when you have someone to talk to who has experienced situations like that or who has played in those countries.

krone.at: When you joined LKS Łódź in January, your new club was only in last place, nine points off a non-relegation place. As things stand now, the situation hardly looks any better for you in terms of numbers. Have you embarked on a "mission impossible" here?
Balić: Anything is possible in soccer. Of course, we had high hopes at the beginning that we might be able to turn things around immediately. But "Mission Impossible"? Of course it will be difficult, but as they always say: "As long as it's mathematically possible, it's also possible from a footballing perspective." Especially when you look at our last few games, which were all really strong - apart from the one against Jagiellonia Białystok, where we were swept away ...

krone.at reporter Hannes Maierhofer and ŁKS-Łódź legendary Husein Balić

(Bild: Hannes Maierhofer)

krone.at: I think it was half a dozen goals there ...
Balić: Yes, exactly. With a red card in the 20th minute and then against the league leaders - you can tell the difference in quality, you have to be honest. But we've also played other opponents who are in the top half of the table - where we showed a strong face, but perhaps didn't have the luck in some situations.

krone.at: Apart from the club's success or failure, how are you personally here in Łódź?
Balić: From a sporting point of view, I'm obviously very happy. I'm making my appearances and playing my games, which was very important for me after the last year and a half at LASK, also for my self-confidence. But my family is also doing great, my children and my wife, who moved here with me. That was also one of the reasons why I chose a European country after all, because it's extremely important to me that my family feels comfortable and has their usual routines. We all feel really at home here, it's a very friendly city that has huge potential. Apart from the situation in the table, I have no reason to complain ...

krone.at: Even though you've only been here in Poland for a few months, how do you rate the standard in the Polish league?
Balić: I rate the level as very good. As "Koulo" or "Adi" said to me, any team can beat anyone. That makes the league extremely interesting. But of course, if you take Austria's top teams, such as Red Bull Salzburg, LASK, Rapid or Sturm, the general intensity of the game is completely different. That also shows that the Austrian league is at international level in top matches. In general, however, the clubs take almost nothing from each other, so it doesn't matter whether they're playing 16th or 5th. It's always exciting and anything is possible.

krone.at: What are the biggest differences between soccer in the Ekstraklasa and that in the Bundesliga?
Balić: I would say that the games are often very tactical at the beginning. The teams are more cautious, first feeling their way into the match - and then it usually only really gets down to business in the second half. It goes back and forth and the score doesn't usually matter: even if one team is leading, they continue to attack. I have to mention the fans, because they really give it their all for 90 minutes. I was used to a lot from Linz, but you don't get that at other clubs in Austria. And with an average of 9000/10,000 fans per game here in Łódź ...

krone.at: Around 9500 - and that despite the poor table situation ...
Balić: Exactly! But that doesn't matter, even at our away games. When you think: Okay, maybe the club isn't that well known now - and yet there are 10,000 spectators in the stadium, where the atmosphere is great the whole time. That really surprised me in a positive way. Of course, "Koulo" and "Adi" told me that in advance, but it's something completely different when you experience it for yourself.

krone.at: When we talk about these 9500 spectators on average here in the LKS Łódź stadium, is the atmosphere still mostly positive despite the situation in the table or is there also frustration being released?
Balić: When we lost the derby at home ...

krone.at: Against Widzew Łódź ... 
Balić:... that wasn't positive, of course! But the fans were right to be angry because we had good spells in the game and just didn't reward ourselves. Of course it goes the other way. But then a new game follows and the fans are in a positive mood again - that's positive. That really surprised me ...

krone.at: Let's take a little trip back in time: At the end of 2020, your name was doing the rounds in the media in England and Scotland, if the BBC and co. had had their way, you should have ended up at Southampton, Brentford or Celtic Glasgow. Why didn't that happen?
Balić: That's difficult to say. First of all, there's a huge difference between media mentions and a concrete offer being made to the club ...

Husein Balić

(Bild: Hannes Maierhofer)

krone.at: Have there been any?
Balić: You'll have to ask those responsible at the club at the time ... (laughs) I didn't have anything on the table. That's why I didn't make a big deal of it at the time, because phone calls and a written offer are always worlds apart in soccer.

krone.at: The BBC is not the most dubious medium, you could say ...
Balić: That's why I say: there were phone calls. But how they knew, I don't know. I was always told: "It's all top secret!" But that's just soccer.

krone.at: Do you ever think about what might have happened if things had gone differently back then?
Balić: To be honest, not at all anymore. Maybe back then, in the moments afterwards, but not at all for a few years now. The only thing that matters to me now is giving my career new momentum.

krone.at: The British once emphasized your speed as a big plus point - what about your sprinting qualities some three years later? Are the 2.75 seconds for the 20 meters and the 39 km/h top speed still relevant?
Balić: (laughs) I don't know if that was 100 percent true with the 39 km/h ... But I'm also known here for being fast ... (laughs) We might have to measure whether the times are still like that.

Part 2 of the detailed interview with Husein Balić will be published on Wednesday!