Stankovic Names Squad for Northern Ireland, Bukari in the Mix
Red Star Belgrade open a new European campaign, and Dejan Stankovic is already weighing form and pitch before the first Champions League qualifier. Bukari is fighting for a starting place.
- Dejan Stankovic has named his squad for the Champions League qualifying round tie against a Northern Ireland side.
- Striker Bukari is in contention for a place in the starting eleven.
- The coach warned that, according to club information, the pitch surface is heavy and hard to play on.
- This is Red Star's first serious test as they enter the European season.
On Tuesday afternoon the Marakana was half empty, a handful of fans in the stands and a couple of camera operators, yet on the grass you could tell something had begun. Stankovic stood in the middle of the pitch, arms folded, watching the side work in a tight space. This was not training for show. It was training for a first match. And a first match in Europe is never just a first match.
The Red Star coach has named his squad for the upcoming Champions League qualifying round tie against a Northern Ireland side. On paper the favourite is clear. On the pitch, as always in July, nothing is guaranteed. Red Star go into these games with one eye on the result and the other on the calendar still to come.
The name drawing the most attention is Bukari. The striker is in contention for the starting lineup, which means Stankovic is thinking of throwing him straight into the fire, with no waiting and no settling-in from the bench. For a coach who likes to kill a game off early, that is no small message. If Bukari starts, Red Star are signalling that they want to settle the question of progress as soon as possible, while the two-legged tie is still young.
Why is the pitch the main talking point this time?
Stankovic said out loud what coaches usually keep to themselves. According to club information, the pitch surface is heavy and hard to play on. That is not a detail to skip over. Red Star build their game on quick ball circulation, short passing and a tempo that wears the opponent down. A poor surface cuts all of that. The ball stops where it should slide, the tempo drops, and the match turns into a wrestle instead of football.
For a side that is the favourite, a bad pitch is always the underdog’s ally. It levels things out. That is why Stankovic’s remark is not preemptive moaning but a warning to his own players not to expect an easy stroll. In these conditions you do not win with beauty, you win with patience and a calm head when the first chance does not go in.
It is also worth remembering that this is only the qualifying round. Red Star are nowhere near the group stage yet, and the road there runs through several two-legged ties in which one bad night can undo an entire summer of preparation. That is why every detail, from the lineup to the turf, is under the microscope.
What is Red Star really after in this match?
The answer is simpler than it looks. Red Star want to go through, but to go through without a cost. No injuries, no bookings that carry into the next match, no needless complication of the tie before the return leg. An early goal would take care of that job, which is why Bukari starting makes sense.
Stankovic knows a season is not made in July, but he also knows it can be ruined then. Teams that fall in the qualifying round spend the rest of the year explaining what went wrong. Red Star cannot afford that mistake, because Europe is the financial and sporting backbone of their whole campaign.
The first match against the Northern Ireland side is on the schedule, and it will show how ready the team is to get the job done even when the pitch works against it. I think Red Star will go through, but I am more interested in how, because the manner of a win usually hints at the season to come. And you, do you believe Bukari settles this tie from the first minute?
