Zeljković after the defeat in Luxembourg: We move on, after Slovakia we will know what we have

(Patria) - After yesterday's match in which the national team of Bosnia and Herzegovina was defeated by Luxembourg, the president of the Football Association of BiH, Vico Zeljković, commented.

"We have a very difficult and unpleasant defeat behind us. Surely no one expected such poor play and result. Coach Milošević, director Misimović and I talked for a long time last night, and this defeat has shown a lot and removed many dilemmas for the future. The matches against Luxembourg and Slovakia were very important for us, to see who can help us achieve our goals. The only good thing last night was that we got two players for the future. However, we also saw that many players are surplus to the national team, that they have neither the desire, nor the will, nor the energy, and some who perhaps had it, do not have the necessary quality.

We still have Slovakia, and surely after that match, many things will be clearer to the coaching staff and the public regarding realistic expectations before the playoffs and with which players we can aim for historic qualification for the EURO.

I most strongly condemn the behavior of individuals, namely hooligans, who, for the money they receive from interest groups that want to take over the association, throw flares onto the field. They are neither helping the players, nor will they achieve anything other than embarrassing the national team, and everyone who thinks rationally must condemn this," said Zeljković.

He added that he understands the dissatisfaction of true fans, because the results are not what we all wanted.

"We will surely know how to make moves for the next period and cycles. I also understand those who, due to the complexity of the environment in which we live, dislike me because of my name and surname. That is understandable and legitimate for me, but whether it is normal is another story, which is not about football.

And the national team is just one segment that the Association deals with. Since I took over as president of the Association, regarding the national team's results, we have not qualified for the World Cup in Qatar through the qualifiers, but in which we have only been once in history. We achieved success by winning first place in the Nations League. Now we have unsuccessful qualifiers, but also playoffs to achieve success in the end. The fact is that we have never qualified for the EURO, and we had better players and a different atmosphere before. This year we have 2-3 defeats that are difficult and shameful and should not have happened. In the past, there were good matches and victories, but the most important thing, qualification for a major tournament, was missing, except for the World Cup in Brazil.

We, as the leadership of the Association, are not satisfied with the results, and no one is ignoring that. I must emphasize that our task is to create infrastructure for domestic football, which we are doing through various projects and which is visible to anyone who wants to see it. Of course, there is also providing conditions for all our selections, and we are doing that at the highest level, on par with the best European selections, we pay for planes, hotels, travel expenses for players, as well as bonuses when results are achieved.

We move on. Thank you all for your support in these difficult times. For the critics and those who think differently, in football, besides these facts, I also understand, greet, and respect different opinions and views," added Zeljković.