Football
“No one will come to the game with the Russians.” Are Bosnia ready to bend to the “Western world”?
The leaders of the national team of Bosnia and Herzegovina are shocked by the decision to play with Russia in St. Petersburg. Will it all end in a boycott?
The Football Association of Bosnia and Herzegovina solemnly announced the holding of a friendly match with the Russian national team. Even UEFA said they were not against this game, but suddenly the main stars of the Bosnians and members of the local football union strongly condemned this decision.
There is a real Russophobia going on in the comments of the fans. How did it happen?
UEFA approves match against Russia
The Russian national football team is desperately lacking competitive practice after the decision of FIFA and UEFA to remove our team from all international tournaments. Because of this, Valery Karpin’s team missed the play-offs for the World Cup in Qatar and lost the opportunity to play at the main four-year forum. Now a big question is our participation in qualifying for Euro 2024.
Holding a friendly match with Bosnia and Herzegovina could just be the beginning of the end of the isolation of Russian football. This meeting was approved by UEFA, which means that they did not put an end to Russia and did not close all the doors for us. And it would be strange for Bosnians to participate in such an event without consulting with the highest European football officials. The picture was very pleasing. Considering that Karpin’s team will play more with Kyrgyzstan and Iran in the fall, this all instilled only positive.
Bosnian team leaders rebellion
However, everything turned out to be far from being so simple. It seems that there is a split in the Football Union of Bosnia and Herzegovina. Apparently, they consulted with UEFA, but did not consult with their own players. How else to explain the fact that the leaders of the national team immediately after the announcement of the match with Russia came out sharply against him. Former Roma and Barcelona player Miralem Pjanic was categorical in his assessments.
— I heard about the decision. The leaders know my position. They called and asked what I thought of this game. Said it was a bad idea! I have no words. When a team starts to play well, something always goes wrong. I’ll just say that the match with Russia is bad, ”Sportske.ba quotes Pyanich.
The captain of the national team of Bosnia and Herzegovina, Edin Dzeko, who plays for Milan Inter, reacted no less emotionally. Dzeko stated that he does not plan to play with Russia under any circumstances.
– I am categorically against the match with Russia! The Football Association of Bosnia knows my position. I don’t make such decisions, but I have a tough opinion that does not involve participation in the match with the Russians, ”Klix quotes Jacko as saying.
“You can’t spoil relations with the advanced Western world”
But, perhaps, the most uncompromising position was taken by the ex-defender of the national team of Bosnia and Herzegovina Ervin Zukanovic, who expressed confidence that none of the Bosnian football players would come to St. Petersburg.
– Every player of the national team of Bosnia and Herzegovina must behave like Pjanic. Whoever appears on the field in a match with Russia should never again play for his country. Captain Dzeko must declare that no one will come to the game with the Russians, Sport quotes Zukanovic. avaz. Ba.
Vice President of the Bosnian Football Association Irfan Duric explained that the decision to hold the match with Russia was made by the emergency committee of the country’s football union. He noted that five people were in favor of playing with Russia, and he was the only one who spoke out against it. But a member of the executive committee of the Bosnian Football Association, Azmir Husic, who did not take part in the vote, admitted that he would oppose the meeting with Russia to the last.
“I will do everything in my power to prevent this game from taking place. I want to convince my colleagues that we don’t need this match. While Russia is in isolation, we must behave as we are asked. And it turns out that everyone is crazy, and we are the smartest. You can not spoil relations with others because of Russia. At least with the advanced Western world. Our duty is to oppose this match, – quotes the words of Husic SportSport.ba.
The arguments, of course, are amazing. Husic essentially admitted that he wants to do everything to make the West happy. It turns out that he does not have his own opinion and could not have such a position. And if you read the comments of the fans to the post about the match with Russia on the social networks of the Bosnian national team, it becomes clear that ordinary people are also not enthusiastic about this idea.
Now the main question remains whether these forces will push through the Football Union of Bosnia and Herzegovina or not. It would be at least strange not to take into account the opinion of Pjanic and Dzeko, so if the meeting with Russia in St. Petersburg does take place, it will turn into a grandiose scandal, the scale of which will spread far beyond the borders of Bosnia itself.
Source: Sportbox
Thomas Astudillo is a sports journalist and author who writes for Sportish. He has a deep love and knowledge of sports, and is known for his engaging and informative writing on the latest sports news and events.