The head coach of the national football team of Bosnia and Herzegovina, Sergej Barbarez, held a press conference today in the premises of the Football Association of Bosnia and Herzegovina in Sarajevo, ahead of the start of the new cycle of the League of Nations. “Dragons” will play as many as four games in the next 11 days, and they will open the competition with two away games. The first match on the schedule is on September 25 in Warsaw against Poland, while three days later in Bucharest they will face off against Romania.
After two away matches, there will be two matches in front of the home crowd. The BiH national team will play against Sweden on October 2 in Zenica, while three days later, on October 5, they will welcome Poland at the same stadium.
Precisely because of the condensed schedule, the health bulletin of the national team was one of the main topics of Barbarez’s address.
Dedić out of the field for several weeks, Busuladžić absent for longer
Barbarez confirmed that he will not be able to count on Amar Dedić and Kenan Busuladžić for the upcoming matches. Dedić renewed his hamstring injury during the match against Leeds, and according to the coach, the new injury is more serious than the previous one.
“I would like to say a few technical things regarding the extent of Amar Dedić’s injury. He renewed his injury against Leeds, the extent of the back injury is greater than before. If he had rested that game, he would certainly be with us now, but such things happen. He will be absent for three or four weeks. He will not be ready for these four games,” said Barbarez.
Kenan Busuladžić, who injured his knee ligaments, will be out for an even longer period. “We also miss Kenan Busuladžić. He will not be in the game for nine months because he tore his cruciate ligaments,” said the selector.
Four new players on the roster
Due to the absence of two players, the coaching staff of the national team decided to activate several previously sent call-ups. Invitations were received by Benjamin Tahirović, Ajdin Hasić, Arjan Malić and Luka Đurić. Barbarez spoke especially about Đurić, who took a new step in his club career and won a place in the Bundesliga.
“We handed out several invitations, we invited Benjamin Tahirović, Ajdin Hasić, Arjan Malić and Luka Đurić from Paderborn. He made a step forward in his career, he plays in the Bundesliga. Although the start of the season was not the most important thing, we want to see him in action so that he can be part of our team,” said Barbarez.
Alajbegović slightly injured
One of the issues that was of particular interest to the public was the state of health of Kerim Alajbegović. The young member of the BiH national team was recently replaced at halftime of Juventus’ match against Atalanta, after which information appeared that the reason for the change was an injury.
Barbarez confirmed that he spoke with Alajbegović and revealed that it was not a serious problem. “We spoke with Alajbegović last night. He is slightly injured, he felt pain in his hip. Juventus doctors examined him last night and he is on his way to Sarajevo. He may take a break for a day or two, but it shouldn’t be anything special,” said the coach.
Match schedule
The BiH national team will play its first match on September 25 against Poland in Warsaw. Three days later, they will host Romania in Bucharest, while on October 2, “Dragons” will welcome Sweden in Zenica.
The cycle will end on October 5 with a match against Poland in Zenica.
