The captain of the football team of Bosnia and Herzegovina, Edin Džeko, is facing another big challenge in his rich career, the appearance at the World Cup in the United States of America, Canada and Mexico.
In an interview with the British Guardian, Džeko spoke about longevity, the Bosnia and Herzegovina national team, qualifying for the World Cup and his future.
“Sometimes everything comes to an end, maybe mine is coming too,” said Dzeko, who at 40 will be one of the oldest players at the upcoming championship.
The former striker of Manchester City, Roma, Inter and Fenerbahce admits that ten years ago he did not believe that he would still be playing professional football at this age.
“If you had asked me ten years ago, I would have said that I would certainly not play at 40. However, I listen to my body, I work a lot before and after training and take care of every detail. I still feel good and believe that I can help my team,” said Džeko.
He points out that he sees the experience today as completely different than when he was a young player.
“When you’re 20 years old, you don’t think about extra training, recovery and injury prevention. You want to spend time with friends. Later you realize how important it is to invest in your body if you want to stay at the top level.”
After a short spell in Fiorentina, Džeko arrived in Schalke in January, where he quickly became an important part of the team.
He already scored a goal on his debut, and with a total of six goals, he made a significant contribution to the return of the famous German club to the Bundesliga.
He especially highlighted the cooperation with coach Miro Muslić, to whom he attributes great credit for the successful season.
Džeko was one of the key players on Bosnia and Herzegovina’s way to the World Cup. His goal against Wales in Cardiff was one of the defining moments of the qualifiers.
This was followed by a great victory against Italy in the play-off, which brought Bosnia and Herzegovina a place in the World Cup.
“There was a lot of talk about Italy, their failure and our stadium in Zenica, but few people talked about how good a team Bosnia and Herzegovina is. We have many young players who showed their worth in those matches,” said Džeko.
Džeko also recalled Bosnia and Herzegovina’s first appearance at the 2014 World Cup in Brazil.
“Playing the first game against Argentina at the Maracana was something special. The only thing missing was qualifying for the next stage of the competition,” said the captain of Zmajeva.
Bosnia and Herzegovina will open their appearance at the World Cup against Canada, and Switzerland and Qatar are also in the group.
Džeko believes that Switzerland is the group’s favorite because of its experience and continuity of performances at major competitions, but he believes that his national team can surprise.
“Switzerland has great players and a lot of experience, but we believe in ourselves and our qualities. We have a good team and we want to do something big”.
When asked about the continuation of his career, Džeko did not want to make any final decisions before talking to Schalke. “First I have to talk to the club and see what their plans are. Schalke is a big club with fantastic fans and I have to admit that everything that has happened in the last four months has been even better than I expected,” Džeko concluded.
