(Otsikko on liioittelua, kun tosiaan vain maalivahti on todennäköisesti telakalla.)
The nightmare of coach Matjaž Kek before the June matches
FOOTBALL Author: Rok Viškovič June 3, 2023 7:00 a.m 2 comments
Before coach Matjaž Kek reveals next week the names of the footballers he will count on in the June qualifiers for the 2024 European Championship against Finland and Denmark, we are checking the condition of his (potential) candidates.
After a 100% start, victories in Kazakhstan and against San Marino in Ljubljana, Slovenia is in an excellent position and at the top of qualifying group H, from which the first two places lead to the European Championship in Germany.
This month she will have slightly more difficult, maybe even crucial exams. First, on June 16, the best Slovenian footballers will play in Helsinki against Finland, which has three points, and three days later, in the most likely sold-out Stožice, they will host the favorites of the Dance group, who also won three points in the first two games.
These two matches may even be crucial in the hunt for the much-desired qualification to the big competition, in which Slovenia last appeared way back in 2010, when under the leadership of the current coach, they played at the World Cup in South Africa.
If Matjaž Kek's protégés were to defeat both the Finns and the Danes, they would make great strides on the way to their desired goal. If the worst were to happen and we were left empty-handed in both games, the reverse would happen. We would go from a very favorable position to a disastrous one.
Let's check the condition of the best Slovenian footballers, who were counted on last time by the Slovenian coach, as well as some who could be counted on this time. We can conclude that there is almost no one to be afraid of, we only have a serious problem where Slovenia has been the strongest for more than a decade. Between the goalposts.
Goalkeepers:
Jan Oblak: Although people from the closest circle of the Slovenian captain are secretive about his state of health, we managed to find out that his appearance in June is practically impossible. This month, Slovenia will have to cope without its most highly regarded football player and captain, on whom a lot depends.
Since the national team in March, he has defended in a total of four matches for Atlético, the last on April 23 against Barcelona in the Spanish championship, but then he was not present for the next seven matches due to neck problems. He is currently undergoing rehabilitation in Madrid, and in between he used two free days to jump to Paris, where he closely followed his new love, the Serbian tennis player Olga Danilović.
Vid Belec: A goalkeeper who, knowing the coach Keko, will most likely replace Oblak, which is expected given his experience (18 appearances for Slovenia, 68 matches in the first and 111 in the second Italian league). Also because he regularly defends throughout. In Cyprus, he made 42 appearances in all competitions for Apoel Nicosia and showed good form. He became national runner-up and also played in Europe. Since the last national team action, he has not missed a single minute of the game.
Matevž Vidovšek: The best goalkeeper in the Slovenian league impressed this season and kept a clean sheet in as many as 18 of the 27 matches he defended in the championship. According to many, it is one of the most deserving that Olimpija won the double crown. As such, he also reached the status of a national team, as expected. Can he now also count on a debut? His form dropped a bit in the second half of the season, and some problems he had at the end of the season are also a concern. He did not defend Olympia in the last three games.
Other options:
Samir Handanović , who helped Inter Milan to the cup trophy, and in a week's time the grand final of the Champions League awaits him in Istanbul, said years ago that he was still ready to come to Slovenia's aid if necessary, but it is hard to believe that would return after almost eight years. Mainly because Slovenia still has quite a few quality goalkeepers.
Aljaž Ivačič regularly defends in the North American league MLS for Portland Timbers. Ažbe Jug showed good form between the goalposts of Maribor , the barely 19-year-old Martin Turk played three times for Sampdoria in the first Italian league , Žiga Frelih returned to the field in the second Spanish league after difficulties...
Defenders:
Jaka Bijol: His first season in the best Italian league is behind him, in which he was one of the more notable members of Udinese and as such attracted the interest of many better clubs. Perhaps he will cash in on a great season with some rich transfer already this summer. He made 33 appearances and scored three goals. He has not missed a single game since his last national team campaign.
Miha Blažič: After the injury he suffered in the first qualifying match in Kazakhstan in March, he played only two games for Angers in the first French league, from which he was convincingly relegated, and accumulated 116 minutes of play. He is happy about the fact that he played in the last league game.
Vanja Drkušić: He also has a good season behind him in the shirt of the Russian Premier League club Sochi, and he too could capitalize on it with a summer transfer for the better. He made 30 appearances in all competitions and missed just one game since his last international campaign. The last one he wasn't at because of a red card.
David Brekalo: The season in Norway is off to a good start, with the 24-year-old former Bravo defender playing 90 minutes in all eight games for the Vikings. Once also in the role of captain, which only confirms the status he has in the team.
Žan Zaletel: He played regularly for Viborg in Denmark and made a total of 36 appearances, but then a few weeks ago he suffered an injury that ended the season early and will of course miss the June matches in Slovenia. Given that he was called up for the last national team campaign later, and he is still waiting to make his debut in the shirt of Slovenia, this will not be too much of a blow for the coach.
Jure Balkovec: He performs regularly and well for Alanyaspor in the first Turkish league, in which he has made 29 appearances and scored four goals this season. Since the last international campaign, he has played in seven of the nine games that were available. Form should not be questionable.
Petar Stojanović: He has played 27 matches in all competitions for Empoli this season, but it is worrying that he has played only 58 minutes out of 900 since his last international campaign. So less than ten percent. We'll see if that affects his form. Considering what he has shown in recent years in the Slovenia jersey, it is clear that he is practically irreplaceable in Keko's eleven.
Žan Karničnik: After starting the season with the Bulgarian Ludogorets, he returned to the Slovenian league in the winter and played in Celje. He performed regularly and helped Celje to second place in the national championship. He hasn't missed a single minute since the last national team action.
Other options:
It will be especially interesting to see if the selector will finally decide to call up left-back Erik Janža , who shines in the Gornik Zabrze shirt in the first Polish league (he collected eight assists in 32 appearances). Among the full-backs, we should also mention Mitjo Iliniča , who as a member of New York City is now drawing attention in the North American league MLS. Kenan Bajrić plays regularly for Pafos in Cyprus. In the Slovenian league, the young ace of Olimpija, Marcel Ratnik, attracted attention .
Midfielders:
Jon Gorenc Stanković: Behind the experienced midfielder is a great season in the shirt of Graz Sturm, with which he was close to the title of Austrian champion, and won the cup at the same time. He was one of the key men of Gradčani, for whom he played as many as 43 matches in one season. Since the last matches of Slovenia, he has missed only one of eleven appearances in a Sturm shirt, and that too because of bookings. In all the rest, he was on the field from the first to the last minute.
Sandi Lovrić: He also had a very good first season in the first Italian league, in which he scored five goals and provided six assists in 36 appearances. Since his last appearance in the national team shirt, he has been in the starting eleven of Udinese in all ten matches and scored two goals and provided three assists.
Miha Zajc: He is on the way out of Fenerbahce, with whom he became the Turkish runner-up, and in a week's time the cup final awaits him, but he has been playing for them fairly regularly lately. He appeared in eight of the 13 games that Fenerbahce played since the last international break, contributing two goals and two assists during that time.
Adam Gnezda Čerin: With Panathinaikos, he was ultimately left without the much-desired national championship title, but he can rate his first Greek season as very positive. Just like in recent times in the Slovenian national team, he was also irreplaceable in Athens. He played as many as 40 matches for Panathinaikos, and was on the field in all ten that were scheduled since the last national team campaign.
Timi Max Elšnik: He was among the most deserving of the Olympia double crown, for which he collected as many as 40 appearances throughout the season. He scored nine goals and collected six assists. Since the last international break, he has played all eleven games in the club's shirt, scoring five goals and two assists. He also scored a goal from eleven meters in the cup final to win over Maribor.
Tomi Horvat: Participated in the cup triumph of Graz Sturm in Austria with the winning goal in the semi-final and the assist for the triumph in the grand final. He finished his first Austrian season with as many as 45 appearances, five goals and seven assists on his account. He started filling his personal statistics right from the last meeting with the national team. Since then, he has played in all eleven of Sturm's games, contributing two goals and three assists.
Domen Črnigoj: He has not played a single minute for Salernitana in the first Italian league since the injury he suffered right at the start of the last national team campaign. The only encouraging thing is that he was at least on the bench in the last two games.
Other options:
Jasmin Kurtić, the record holder for the number of appearances among active national teams, is probably returning to the selector's list , who may have recovered from an injury, but the experienced midfielder has not played since October last year. Of course, his readiness is questionable.
There aren't many other options. Perhaps Žan Majer , who regularly plays for Reggina in the second Italian league. David Tijanić , who was already in the national team, is performing well in Saudi Arabia in the shirt of Al-Adalah .
Žan Roglje and Sandi Ogrinec have a solid season in Austria, both playing for Innsbruck . Maybe Svit Sešlar and Jan Repas convinced the selectors with their good performances in the shirts of Olimpija and Maribor respectively ...
Attackers:
Benjamin Šeško: The leader of the Slovenian attack, who just turned 20 a few days ago , ended his time in Salzburg with a new title of Austrian champion and as the third top scorer in the local Bundesliga. In total, he scored 18 goals in 41 appearances in all competitions, which is his record. Since the last national team campaign, which he spiced up with another goal, he has played all nine of Salzburg's matches and during this time scored six goals and also contributed an assist. His shooting form is not in question.
Žan Celar: Another Slovenian striker who was the third best scorer in the league in which he played. He scored 16 goals in 30 appearances in the first Swiss league for Lugano, with whom he is yet to reach the cup final. Four in the ten appearances that have passed since Slovenia's last game.
Andres Vombergar: His scoring form for San Lorenzo, with whom he finished second in the first part of the Argentine league, has dried up a bit in the months since his last international action. He scored only two goals in his last 14 appearances. But he is happy to play all the time.
Andraž Šporar: He finished his first season at Panathinaikos with 14 goals and 6 assists in 37 appearances in all competitions. Since the last international campaign, which he missed due to injury, he has played nine out of ten available club matches. He was in the starting line-up at halftime and scored three goals and provided two assists.
Žan Vipotnik: The Maribor striker, who is expected to make a big transfer in the summer, proved himself in the last national team action with the winning goal on his debut, and also left a good impression in the match against San Marino, so he has high hopes for himself from June. He finished the season as the top scorer in the Slovenian league with 20 goals, and since the last national team campaign, he has scored six goals in nine appearances in the championship and the cup. The only thing that can worry him a little is that in Maribor's last three matches, he failed to shake the opponents' net.
Luka Zahović: For Pogon, he scored 11 goals in 38 appearances in all competitions in Poland. Since his last appearance in Slovenia, he has played seven out of nine matches in a club shirt and scored one goal. He is a regular in the starting eleven.
Benjamin Verbič: He finished his first Greek season with 31 appearances for Panathinaikos, but the vast majority were from the bench. He scored three goals and provided two assists. Since the last national team campaign, he was in the starting eleven of the giants of Athens only once. In ten games, he accumulated a total of 106 minutes of play. His goal and assist stats remained blank.
Other options:
Certainly the first candidate is Jan Mlakar , who has recently been one of the best football players of Hajduk Split, with whom he once again won the Croatian Cup. He scored 14 goals for him this season. In Thailand, Haris Vučkić excelled with 10 goals for Buriram United, with which he won as many as three laurels .
In China, Robert Berić plays regularly for Jinmen Tiger in the strong league there . Behind Alen Ožbolt is a season in which he scored eleven times for the giants of Israeli football, Hapoel Tel Aviv. Nino Žugelj scored four goals for Bodo/Glimt in Norway . Damjan Bohar plays regularly and well for Zaglebie Lubin .
In the Slovenian league, Aljoša Matko impressed in the Celja shirt , who showed national team form in recent weeks. In the last five matches, he scored as many as eight goals, a total of 14. The same applies to Ester Sokler , who impressed in the good series of Radomelj. He finished the season with 10 goals.
https:// sportklub.n1info.si/nogomet/slovenska-nogometna-reprezentanca-junij/
Tuon jälkeen sama sivusto uutisoinut Seskon poissaolosta eilisestä RB Salzburgin viimeisestä panoksettomasta ottelusta jonkun lihasvamman takia mutta ilmeisesti pikkujuttu.
When the devil has the young: After Oblak, Šeško also has problems
FOOTBALL Author: Rok Viškovič June 4, 2023 9:33 am
It is more or less clear that Slovenia will have to find themselves without their biggest star, captain Jan Oblak, in the important June qualifiers for the 2024 European Championship. Could you still be without top scorer Benjamin Šešek?
Benjamin Šešek was not even on the Salzburg bench in yesterday's last game of the season, when the Austrian champions drew 1:1 against Vienna Austria in the last championship round. The young ace of Slovenian football missed the visit to Vienna due to health problems.
Šeško missed the insignificant match due to a muscle injury he received a week ago in the match against Austria in Cologne, in which he scored a goal and assisted in a 3:2 victory.
It was also his last appearance for Salzburg, from which he is saying goodbye after four years. This summer, he will also officially become the most expensive footballer in the history of Slovenian football, moving to RB Leipzig for 24 million euros.
Fortunately, it's not supposed to be anything serious
According to our information, there is no need to fear that Slovenia, after captain Jan Oblak , will be without Šešek in the June qualifiers for the 2024 European Championship against Finland and Denmark.
Fortunately, there is nothing worse with the first striker of Slovenia. He missed the last club game of the season mainly as a precaution. Also because he did not want to risk injury, as he wants to be completely ready for the very important national team matches in June.
Šeško is already in Slovenia, and with some of the remaining football players, preparations for the June qualification cycle, which the Slovenians started with two victories and are currently at the top of the qualification group H, should begin on Wednesday.
In the last year, he became the holder of Slovenia
This is also the day when coach Matjaž Kek will present the list of footballers he will count on this time.
Oblak, the captain and first star of Slovenian football, will almost certainly not be there, as he will have to miss the next national team match due to neck problems, which will of course be a big blow for Slovenia.
Another very big blow for Slovenia would be if it was also left without Šešek. Despite his youth, he has become one of the mainstays of the national team and the main weapon in the attack in the last year.
In Slovenia's last seven matches, he scored five goals and provided two assists. He had a hand in more than half of the goals scored by the Slovenian national team during that time (12).
https:// sportklub.n1info.si/nogomet/ko-ima-hudic-mlade-po-oblaku-ima-tezave-tudi-sesko/
