Vojvodina football players officially started preparations for the 2023/14 season today.
After the medical examinations were carried out over the weekend, the Manager, Radoslav Batak, conducted a roll call today, before the first training session.
There are 41 players on the list, who will begin preparations and have a chance to impose themselves and prove themselves to coach Batak. Voša will do the first part of the preparations on the grounds of FC Vujadin Boškov, after which, from July 1 to July 15, the second part will follow at Mariborsko Pohorje, just like last summer.
– The vacation passed quickly, but we used it actively, we know where we left off. This year we want to take a step further, so that Vojvodina is known for its players from the Youth Academy, but how much they will play depends on them, how they will work and how they will fit in. We are maximally focused on what lies ahead, we have set goals and we know what they are. We will see how everything will look, but we want to go one step higher, last season we were fifth. We want to leave an impression in Europe, and in the championship we have all the conditions to achieve even better results. Vojvodina should be represented as it has been throughout its history – said Batak.
Friendly matches await Vojvodina already in the first part of the preparations, during which Batak will test 41 players, and 28 footballers will go to the second part.
– We have already changed the program, we will play two games in the first 10 days and those young players should get a chance, but also be patient. Some will get a chance, but if they don’t, that doesn’t mean they should give up. I got the chance at the age of 18 and again I didn’t have 90 minutes, so I only waited for it at the age of 24, I was patient, and later the path took me abroad. They need to be committed, because young players today have to wait for their chance. Of course there are exceptions. We have the example of Jovan Milošević, who did not play, but later returned to the team and helped us, but he did not mature biologically as a player either. He could not play continuously for three or four games, but that is not and should not be a problem for young players. They should be dedicated and focused and be ready to use their five minutes – said Batak.
He also referred to the upcoming draw for the second round of qualification for the Conference League.
– We will see what kind of opponent we will get, but we want to prepare for everything. We have six weeks until then and I hope we present ourselves in the right light. That second round will be easier on paper, but in my opinion we have to prepare for everything equally and not relax, because it can backfire on us – said Batak.
Coach of Voša revealed that the coaching staff also received reinforcements.
– There is Savo Pavićević, a former Vojvodina player who also worked with me in Niš. In the conditioning sector, there is young Luka Miljević from the Youth Academy, as well as Bojan Neziri who comes from the youth facility, and these are people who know what Vojvodina is and what our imperatives are, and that is why they were chosen to become part of our team – concluded Batak.
Yves Baraye, who arrives a day later, received permission to join the team later, while Nikola Čumić and Mamadou Traore will join training on Monday due to their obligations to the national team.
List of players at the start of preparations:
1. Lazar Carević
2. Nemanja Toroman
3. Ranko Puškić
4. Marko Bjeković
5. Milan Lazarević
6. Filip Antonijević
7. Igor Jeličić
8. Nemanja Ljubisavljević
9. Mamadou Traore
10. Đorđe Crnomarković
11. Asmir Kajević
12. Mirko Topić
13. Vladimir Miletić
14. Radomir Milosavljević
15. Aleksandar Busnić
16. Dejan Zukić
17. Uroš Nikolić
18. Filip Malbašić
19. Nikola Čumić
20. Yves Baraye
21. Uros Kabić
22. Nemanja Nikolić
23. Ivan Vukčević
24. Mihajlo Ivanović
25. Milan Vidakov
26. Siniša Tanjga
27. Lukijan Abadžija
28. Milan Kovačev
29. Dragan Kokanović
30. Miloš Popović
31. Vanja Apostolovski
32. Uroš Paunović
33. Marko Kerkez
34. Luka Drobnjak
35. Lazar Jovanović
36. Stefan Bukinac
37. Uroš Vitas
38. Stefan Đorđević
39. Ognjen Bogunović
40. Branislav Milanov
41. Vuk Bogdanović