It has been ten days since Vojvodina football players, like all other teams in the country, stopped training. The state of emergency and the pandemic caused by the corona virus have caused the movement and stay of more people in the same place to be rigorously restricted, and in such circumstances players usually train independently at home and try to stay fit.

Of course, all the exercises they do, the players of Vojvodina do according to the instructions of fitness coach Saša Semeredi, with whom they are in daily contact.

– In these circumstances, what is most important at the moment is excellent communication between players and members of the coaching staff, as well as between the players themselves. We are in touch with our players every day and we control how they carry out the work program we have given them. The program consists of two parts. The first relates to maintaining fitness through running and riding a bike, and the second to strength exercises done at home. Unfortunately, because of the snow, the first part of the program is difficult to put into practice right now, but most players have managed to get a room bike, thus bridging this new natural obstacle we encountered. This training process consists of six trainings per week and is fully in line with the recommendations we received from the ministry – says Semeredi.

Still, according to him, these types of training are not adequate for professional athletes.

– I have to say that it will be a miracle if players in these conditions manage to maintain the form they had before the state of emergency. Neither they, nor us coaches, have ever faced such a situation before and that is why we need to adapt to it day by day. It is very important for football players to have trust in the instructions we give them, and in common groups on the phone applications we often exchange experiences, training recordings and more, and on that basis we sometimes get new ideas and implement new working methods – Semeredi notes.

In this regard, Voša will start with one novelty today when it comes to the work of the first team.

– Today we will start with joint online trainings, which will make Vojvodina surely among the first, if not the first in Serbia that does this. It will be done by me showing off exercises from my house, and through a conference call, the players will follow me, so it will be as if we are all in the same place together. In addition to training itself, it is extremely important to maintain a good atmosphere within the team, because as things stand for now, the season will continue, and the team that handles better this unplanned break will have an advantage when the games start. Therefore, as long as there is no official confirmation that the season is over, we will continue to train as much as we can. I know it’s hard to train on your own, but this is a huge career challenge for both players and fitness coaches, and I hope we can overcome it together – says Semeredi.

In his opinion, it would be best if this season be declared over.

– Since nothing can replace teamwork with the ball, the drop in form for all players and teams will be huge. What we do in these circumstances is not enough and it will be very dangerous after all this to enter a competition in which two games per week will be played. The risk of injury will be high, and thus even the entire careers of footballers can be compromised. In my opinion, when a state of emergency passes, teams will need at least four weeks of preparation to get ready to continue the competition, but given the lack of time, it might be the smartest decision of the Association at this point to declare the season over. If the league continues after all, it would be even less regular than declaring the competition finished. It should be borne in mind that there is a season after this one and that is why a lot of young players in our football should be taken into consideration, as one injury can change their whole career – Semeredi points out.

The fitness coach of Vojvodina has also advised everyone who is not a professional athlete on how to take care of their body during a state of emergency.

– The most important thing is smart improvisation and trying not to disrupt the usual amount of activities during the day. In addition to not being able to go to the gym or play a sport they are used to, the standard dose of activities during the day is also reduced, so it is very important that for people to be maximally active indoors and do some of the many exercises that can be done at home. Also, in this situation special attention should be paid to good nutrition, and at the time when it is possible to go outside, it is allowed to run, but only independently and without any contact with other persons – said Semeredi.