Serbia - World Cup 2010 (by Cup of Bovril)

The build up to South Africa hit a bump, in the unlikely shape of New Zealand,  for Serbia in Klagenfurt on Saturday. 
In a disappointing performance that saw stand-in captain Nemanja Vidic, forced to take a microphone in the second half to calm an angry Serb support.  The match was disrupted by fans throwing flares and missiles onto the pitch and a number of supporters ran onto the pitch leading to Vidic pleading for the game to be allowed to continue.

Serbia, facing a side 63 places bellow them in the FIFA rnakings, were already a goal behind in the match by the time the frustrations of their support was displayed.

With unfimiliar line-up in defence and midfield, Serbia found themselves surprisingly behind in the 22 minute by a goal from Shane Smeltz.  A long ball that was directed towards goal by Vidic found its way to Smeltz who turned back inside Antonio Rukavina, the right back, before sliding a low shot past, Vladimir Stojkovic inside the right hand post.  The concerns over Stojkovic in goal are real for Antic and the Serbian support.

Serbia had plenty of chances to get back into the game but both Zigic and Pantelic were wastefull of the chances that came their way. 
The performance of Zoran Tosic was a positive to take from the match as he looked comfortable on the left flank, in the absence of Milan Jovanovic.  He had a few impressive runs all ending with a good delivery that was then wasted in front of the New Zealand goals.

Poland are next up for the White Eagles this Wednesday in Kufstein, before the squad heads to Belgrade to face Cameroon in their final warm up game at the Maracanna (Crvena Zvezda Stadium) on Saturday 5th June.

The 30 man provisional World Cup squad has been announced in Belgrade by Radomir Antic.


There are not many surprises in the selection, with the only notable absences being squad regulars Bosko Jankovic and Ivica Dragutinovic who had already been ruled out of contention due to injury.

Antic will cut the squad down to 23 players for the 10th June, by which time the White Eagles will be in their training camp in Johannesburg.


Goalkeepers: Vladimir Stojkovic (Wigan), Zeljko Brkic (Vojvodina Novi Sad), Bojan Isailovic (Cukaricki Belgrade), Andjelko Djuricic (Leiria).

Defenders: Branislav Ivanovic (Chelsea), Antonio Rukavina(Munich 1860), Nemanja Vidic (Manchester United), Neven Subotic (Borussia Dortmund), Aleksandar Lukovic (Udinese), Ivan Obradovic (Saragossa), Aleksandar Kolarov (Lazio).

Midfielders: Dejan Stankovic (Inter Milan), Nenad Milijas(Wolverhampton), Miloss Krasic (CSKA Moscow), Milan Jovanovic (Standard Liege), Milos Ninkovic (Dynamo Kiev), Zdravko Kuzmanovic (Stuttgart), Zoran Tosic (Cologne), Miralem Sulejmani (Ajax), Gojko Kacar (Hertha Berlin), Nemanja Matic (Chelsea), Radosav Petrovic (Partizan Belgrade).

Forwards: Nikola Zigic (Valencia), Marko Pantelic (Ajax), Danko Lazovic (Zenith), Dragan Mrdja (Vojvodina), Dejan Lekic (Red Star Belgrade).

With the provisional squads needing to be announced before 12th May and then the final 23 to be declared by 10th June, Radomir Antic has much to think about.

The pre -tournament build up for the Serbian team is one thing that has now been decided by Antic and the Serbian FA.

On the 29th May, the White Eagles will head to Austria to face New Zeland and then return to Belgrade to meet Cameroon on June 5th.

The two friendlies have been lined up with the opponnents who await in Group D very much in mind.

Australia and Ghana, along with Germany are the teams which Serbia must face and the thinking in the Serbian FA is that these two friendlies will help prepare the side for what they will face in the group.

Injury worries are not exclusive to Fabio Cappelo and the England squad, with Branislav Ivanovic out of club action till May and Bosko Jankovic completly ruled out of the Serbian squad for this summer’s World Cup. These injuries are a concern for Serbia but they have also hightlighted the depth of the current squad.


Ivanovic, who has torn a medial knee ligament, would be a automatic starter in the Serb defence and as long as he recovers as hoped he will still take up his position in the side. But what if he does not recover? Will this lead to problems at the back?

To look at the make up of the squad you would say no. There are a number of young defenders who are playing their football in the either Italy, Spain or Germany able to slot into the team. This could easily be the opportunity for either Neven Subotic, Ivan Obradovic, Aleksandar Kolarov or Aleksandar Lukovic to impress on a major stage. The highly thought of Subotic, of Borussia Dortmund is a potential star in the making and a move to a major european club would surely follow a good World Cup appearance.

Bosko Jankovic, who plays for Genoa, is viewed as the natural cover for first choice Milos Kracic on the right side of midfield has not recovered from an anterior cruciate ligaments injury in his left knee. Janokovic made a return for Genoa earlier this month after a six month recovery from surgery only to aggravate his condition and now has a further prolonged period of recovery ahead.

The news will bring Manchester United winger, Zoran Tosic up the pecking order with the White Eagles.
Tosic, who is currently on loan with FC Koln in Germany after a disappointing spell in Manchester, has a good record with the national squad. He is a direct tricky player with a very good turn of pace and has seems more comfortable playing with his compatriots. Tosic has now scored in his last two appearances, the final goal coming in the 3-0 defeat of Tunisa earlier this Month.


Even with the disapointment of 4 years ago in Germany fresh in the memory, the make up of the current squad and its attacking style put in place by Raddy Antic has seen a completely new Serbian football identity arise. This is a confident and strong team who the other sides in group D should not take lightly.

Four months out from kick off in Pretoria, the hopes of coach Radomir Antic, “my ambitions are much bigger than qualification” look to be shaky.


After an impressive qualification campaign for the White Eagles, the world cup draw and problems facing the squad have since deflated ambitions.

After being drawn once more in the world cup “group of death” along with Germany , Ghana and Australia, the key players seem to not be playing regular football.

Antic’s prefered formation of 4-4-2 is based on a familair spine of 5 players, most of which are having problems with their club sides. Can he confidently pick his best side or will he be hampered by the club form of his stars?


Vladmoir Stojkovic, the number one goalkeeper is currently on load at Wigan Athletic. He joined Sporting Club in 2007 but due to poor form he fell out of favour quickly and has seen limited action at club level since. He does hold 29 caps and is the first choice keeper in the squad, having played 8 out of 10 qualifiers, and travelled to Germany with the squad in 2006.


Namanja Vidic, when fit, has been a regular over the last 5 years in the side. With 44 caps to his name he was part of the famous four defence that qualified for the last tournament in 2006. Due to a knee injury sustained in the build up to the tournament the team missed his physical presence in defence conceding 10 goals in 3 games, crashing out with 3 defeats. He has not featured for Manchester United since the 30th December with an injury that the FSS are still seeking clarity on.


The leader of the team is 85 times capped Dejan Stankovic. He is ready to return from a 5 week absence due to a knee injury with Internazionale. He has been in fine form this season with the Serie A club and is the man that makes the Serbs tick. When Stankovic plays they do not lose.
In what will be his third and possibly final World Cup appearance a lot will be expected from the captain.


The main attcaking threat remains 6’8” striker, Nikola Zigic. With 13 goals in 41 games, Zigic is Antic’s leader of the line when playing 4-4-2 or the more reserved 4-5-1. At the last World Cup he was back up to the more experienced Milosovic and Kesman, featuring only in the final group game against Ivory Coast when he scored the opening goal of the game. His club career has been mixed since 2006 from highs with Racing Santander to the lows of Valencia, where he is currently suspended after moking his club coach whilst on the subs bench.


The player giving Antic the least worry must be the flying winger, Milos Krasic who is currently with CSKA Moscow. A much coveted player who has been recently linked with moves to Manchester United, Milan and Bayern Munich. With the Russian season running March to November, he has enjoyed a close season break over the winter and will be well rested when the new Russian season start on 12 March.
He played in all 10 qualifiers, the only member of the squad to do so, scoring twice and was given the Golden Ball by the FSS, for 2009 as the best Serbian footballer.

The 3rd of March sees the White Eagles head to Algiers to face Algeria in a friendly game as part of final preparations before the World Cup and will give Antic the chance to spend some much needed time with his squad.