The worries are great

Staff shortages and protests for ÖFB opponents Serbia

Serbia's national team at Euro 2024

(Bild: GEPA)

Serbia's national soccer team arrives in Vienna with a number of problems. Team boss Dragan Stojkovic is plagued by personnel worries, especially in defense. In addition, there are ongoing disagreements with midfield star Sergej Milinkovic-Savic, who is once again not in the squad for this week's Nations League play-off clash with Austria. And the mass protests against the government in Belgrade at the weekend have not left the team unscathed.

More than 300,000 people are said to have demonstrated against President Aleksandar Vucic in Serbia's capital on Saturday. It is likely to have been the largest demonstration in the history of the Balkan country. The fact that Stojkovic, a figurehead since his playing days, did not want to comment on this in his press conference on Monday when asked did not go down well with the protesting students in the social networks. Instead, an association spokesperson replied that they were only talking about sport. However, Stojkovic had previously also expressed his condolences to neighboring North Macedonia for the devastating disco fire that claimed 59 lives on Sunday night and offered a charity match.

Endless saga over Milinkovic-Savic
The Serbs met at the association's own training center in Stara Pazova on Monday and planned to travel to Vienna on Tuesday evening. Numerous prominent names were missing, including Milinkovic-Savic and record goalscorer Aleksandar Mitrovic, who have both been earning their money in Saudi Arabia since 2023. While Stojkovic expects Mitrovic to make a comeback at the start of the World Cup qualifiers in June after his recent cardiac arrhythmia, Milinkovic-Savic's future in the national team is completely open.

Sergej Milinkovic-Savic

(Bild: AP/Frank Augstein)

According to Stojkovic, the 30-year-old former Lazio Roma professional once again blamed mental reasons for not feeling ready to play for Serbia. "We didn't talk too much and for too long, I wasn't interested in that either," explained the team boss. "Just yes or no." At the moment, it's obviously no. Milinkovic-Savic hasn't been in the Serbian squad since the European Championship in the summer. The same applies to his two years younger brother Vanja, goalkeeper at FC Torino, who was once also active in the GAK youth team.

Another loss in central defense
The personnel worries in central defense have worsened. Werder Bremen's Milos Veljkovic is out for the games in Vienna on Thursday and in Belgrade on Sunday due to a concussion he suffered at the weekend. Ex-Salzburg player Strahinja Pavlovic (AC Milan) and Nikola Milenkovic from Premier League surprise third-placed Nottingham Forest will be missing for the first leg, as will Salzburg left-back Aleksa Terzic and the injured attacker Andrija Zivkovic (PAOK Saloniki), who are suspended with yellow cards.

Stojkovic replied that the Austrians will also have to make do with Kevin Danso, Marcel Sabitzer and Stefan Posch. "But that won't change our opinion. Austria are extremely good and compact. They are aggressive and run an awful lot," warned "Piksi", as the team boss is known in reference to a cartoon series he once loved. He also has respect for Marko Arnautovic, who has Serbian roots: "He's one of the best players I know. It's a shame that he plays for Austria, but we have to accept fate."

Serbia's attacking line is led by Dusan Vlahovic. The 25-year-old has 14 goals in competitive matches, but was recently relegated to the substitutes' bench at Juventus Turin. He has not scored for the national team for almost two years. "He is one of our most important cogs," Stojkovic emphasized. "He will get the opportunity to show his club that they are wrong." Luka Jovic from AC Milan is earmarked as his strike partner.

Missed opportunity in the fall
The Serbs played a strong Nations League group stage in the fall, finishing third in League A behind Spain and Denmark and ahead of Switzerland. With a win in the final direct duel, they could have overtaken the Danes, entered the quarter-finals and been drawn from Pot 1 in the World Cup qualifying draw at Austria's expense. The match in Leskovac ended 0-0, however, and the ÖFB team subsequently received a more favorable World Cup qualifying draw with the opponents Romania, Bosnia, Cyprus and San Marino.

Austria's national team will host Serbia on Thursday.

(Bild: GEPA)

Currently number 32 in the FIFA world rankings, the Serbs are ten places behind Austria. In a European Championship test in June last year, the ÖFB team won 2:1 in Vienna. Patrick Wimmer and Christoph Baumgartner scored in the first quarter of an hour. Austria have won the last two matches, before that Serbia were successful three times. If you include the 18 matches with Yugoslavia, officially listed by FIFA and UEFA as the predecessor association, Austria's international record is also negative. Eleven of the 23 matches were lost. Only four of the ÖFB's eight victories came after 1950.