Zoran Mirković spoke about the team’s plans for the March international window and the importance of the upcoming tests ahead of the 2027 European Championship, which will be held in Serbia:
“We have gathered, we were supposed to have two tests, and I think it’s a pity that we won’t have the opportunity to play against Japan, who are an excellent team. It looks like we will play both matches against Kyrgyzstan, with their U23 team, since they do not have an U21 side.”
Since taking over, head coach Mirković has given opportunities to a large number of young players, which has expanded the pool of the youth national team, and now several debutants will once again get a chance to feature:
“We have had a situation since September where international windows overlap with both the senior and the youth national teams. We know that the U19 players have very demanding qualification matches, so we have moved a group of players into that selection. Another group is with the senior team, while some players are missing this camp due to injuries. We decided to give a chance to players from the domestic league, to see them all, give them an opportunity, and broaden the pool of players we can rely on in the future.”
The joint stay with the senior national team at the FSS Sports Center has brought new synergy and additional motivation:
“It is a good thing that we are all together, because of synergy and unity. I would also like to commend the initiative that coach Paunović carried out with players from the Serbian Super League; I believe this should become practice and be applied across all national team levels.”
Among the debutants is Milan Kolarović, a Vojvodina player, for whom the call-up to the Serbia U21 national team was also the first in his career, and he did not hide his excitement:
“I am honored to be here, the conditions are phenomenal. I can’t wait to get on the pitch. I have positive expectations. We will give our best, I want us to train as hard as possible, and we will try to follow the coaching staff’s ideas on the pitch. We will prepare and travel to Turkey to win. Working with coach Mirković will mean a lot to me, and I hope we will get along as well as possible. I have many role models in the senior national team, and I hope I will play with them one day.”
Uroš Tegeltija praised the atmosphere among his teammates and highlighted his goals in the national team jersey:
“I mostly already knew the guys; we had met earlier in the youth national teams. They are good people and good teammates, and I hope we will train well in a positive atmosphere. My main goal is to improve as much as possible, both on and off the pitch. I hope successes will follow and that one day I will wear the senior national team jersey. I expect a lot from the match; whenever you wear the national team jersey, you should always go for victory.”
