The youth football team of Montenegro, which achieved a historic result by qualifying for the European Championship, among the eight best teams on the Old Continent - is a classic Montenegrin "product".
All the players were born in 2006 or later - since Montenegro became an independent state. The coaches who led this generation - Goran Perišić, then Nenad Vukčević, were educated at our Coach Education Center.
Can we, for the first time, talk about the classic Montenegrin school of football?
- The placement at the European Championship is the result and crown of the quality work of our coaches with the highest quality players of that age group, and I must emphasize - continuous work - says Niko Raičković, director of the FSCG Coach Education Center, for "Vijesti".
- The former Yugoslav school was recognizable in Europe. For a long time, we were content with that school, while everyone else raised their level and performances, surpassing us and our level. Since 2007, we have been trying to create our vision, identity and development of future players, relying on our playing staff, creating players. And that is a process that has finally yielded results. This generation achieved great results in both the first and second years of qualifying, coming within a step of the European Championship. In the third, it finally reached its goal - emphasizes Raičković.
What has changed, from a professional perspective? It is undeniable that an extra-talented generation has been "hit" with Vasilije Adžić, Andrija Bulatović, Marko Perović, Bodin Tomašević... but the talent - from such a small base - is not enough for such a grandiose success.
- When we look at this result, it seems unreal, to enter such an elite not among the 16 or 24, but among the eight best in Europe - it's magnificent. I think the key change, or progress, is that we have made progress in a physical sense and that we were able to compete with everyone in that regard as well - emphasizes Raičković.
- In technical and tactical terms, we could compete with the best before, but we suffered physically. Maintaining form, rhythm and level of play throughout the entire match is the most difficult process for a coach. And this generation has matched every opponent in that, playing without oscillations. It's no longer a matter of how much you know - but how much you can maintain your level throughout the entire 90 minutes.
The continuous and targeted work of the Coach Education Center in this segment has yielded results, believes Raičković.
- This is the result of the continuous work of our coaches, not only in the national teams, but also in the clubs. Recently, we have placed a huge emphasis on the development of the physical performance of players. We have educated a generation of fitness coaches and, through licensing, obliged all first and second league teams to have fitness coaches. We will soon impose that all younger categories also have fitness coaches, because this is a very important segment, especially working with players aged 13, 14 or 15, when they are developing in football.
There are two segments that have particularly profiled this generation.
- The first step is the continuity of professional coaching work in clubs. Lately, we have been working on controlling the work of coaches in clubs through coordinators, and then we introduced mentors who controlled the work of both coordinators and coaches within the clubs. The second step is the creation of a mini-academy, a project that has been going on for four years. The best boys of that age group come together, work according to a quality program with the best coaches and are dedicated to improving their performance. I believe that this is the only way to achieve certain results, not only in the competition, but also in the development of our players. This is the future of football, not only in our country but also in the surrounding area, everywhere. At all the seminars organized by UEFA, the conclusions are mostly the same - the formation of academies, both national and club, is the only way.
Montenegro has good coaches, believes Raickovic.
- We have coaches, extremely talented, dedicated and high-quality. Coaching work, however, depends on numerous factors - the organization of the club, conditions, the competition itself, finances. It's not easy for coaches either, it's a tough job. If they want to reach the highest level from the beginning, they need at least 10-12 years of education and work. It's like that everywhere in the world.
Montenegro, however, does not have enough coaches, believes the director of the Coaches Education Center, despite some criticism that too many diplomas are being awarded.
- We don't have too many coaches! There are generational changes coming, many coaches are getting older, and according to UEFA's program, we have to train 50 percent more coaches in order to satisfy our market, which is quite small. Through the training process, we create a base and selection - UEFA C diploma, UEFA B, the best ones go to UEFA A, and the really best ones go to UEFA Pro. This is a process that the Education Center has implemented well, because we have introduced licensing and we have no problems with competitions at all levels - concludes Raičković.
How to use a small base as an advantage
A small base of football players - a big limitation for Montenegro, and it will always be like that.
Niko Raičković, however, points out that what is a disadvantage can, to some extent, be used in a positive way.
- It's not easy with a small base, that's why every player of every age is very significant and important. With a small base, however, it's easier in some ways - a smaller base allows you to concentrate on a certain number of players, to keep an eye on those players and keep them together. That's very important, provided that you have continuity of work and competition.
However, there are inevitable limitations.
- There is a big problem in the junior leagues, where there is no strong competition in the competition. That is something that is a minus. We are trying to create leagues of quality youth players, quality cadets, so that the results are as even as possible, so that there are no oscillations in the sense of - 7:0, 6:0, 5:0, because such results are of little use, both for those who win and for those who lose. It is not only the competition within the team among the players that is important, the competition between the teams, in the competition, is important.
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