Between trophies and rockets: Jovović on the chaos that stopped football in Kuwait

It was late February when the US and Israel attacked Iran, and Kuwait is the only country in the Persian Gulf (along with Saudi Arabia, Qatar, the UAE, Bahrain and Oman) where the football championship has been stopped - and has not yet resumed. Games are being played everywhere after a short break, despite the appalling security situation.

In Kuwait, Montenegrin coach Nebojsa Jovović He was already shaping up to be a legend. The reigning champion with SC Kuwait, the current winner of both cups, was on the verge of new trophies - he has won four in Kuwait so far - when long-range Iranian missiles, targeting US military bases in that country, abruptly ended the championship.

When will it continue - there is still no definitive and official answer.

As in the era of isolation due to the coronavirus, which everyone has experienced, uncertainty is what particularly affects everyone in Kuwait who is involved in sports, and this includes Jovović's associates from Montenegro: Marko Jovanovic, Darko Lubarda i Blazo Igumanović.

What happens?

- It's not easy, and it was especially difficult during March, because you don't have a date, you don't have a plan. The Ministry of Sports has banned training sessions, we tried to keep the team in a "medium" training process with individual plans for each player. What a strange situation. We played our last game on February 28th against Naser, the very day when all this started, and then we were 12 points behind our closest competitor in the standings. Then everything stopped - Nebojša Jovović tells "Vijesti".

The bombs, therefore, stopped - or only briefly interrupted - the continuation of the trophy harvest, but as of a few days ago, the first signs that there will soon be football again.

- Luckily, we are playing the Asian Cup, an international competition, where we qualified for the quarterfinals, and the Asian Football Confederation has determined that the quarterfinals will be played on April 19, in one country, Kyrgyzstan. That's why we traveled to Saudi Arabia for preparations, we can finally train. It's not the optimal time to get back into rhythm, the break was too long, but there are no excuses, we have to adapt. Our rival in the quarterfinals is Shabab from Oman, a serious team, with a serious coach, a Dutchman. There is only one match to be played, just like the semifinals - emphasizes Jovović.

There are hints that domestic competitions in Kuwait could resume, but not until August.

- It's not easy, the airport was immediately closed, it's still closed, all of that made us very nervous, with the uncertainty of when, and if, it will resume at all. What made things a little easier for us, what brought us into a kind of comfort zone, is the big advantage we have in the standings. There are still four rounds left, we have a 12-point advantage, they say that if it continues, the playoffs will probably not be played. In that case, we still need a point to theoretically be first. Also, we qualified for the final of one cup, the semi-finals of another, we also have the Asian Cup, so - whatever decision is made cannot be inappropriate for us. Unless all of that is canceled, every competition, which is unlikely. In any case, the results we had before the break helped us.

An unusually comfortable position even for Jovović, who has worked in eight Arab countries, winning trophies in Jordan, Iraq, Tunisia before Kuwait...

- This is the first time as a coach I have such a big difference at the top. We were first all last season, but our rival, Al Arabi, was breathing down our necks, in the end the duel between us in the last round decided the champion, we could have lost. Even before, in Iraq, Jordan, when I was winning titles, it was a 'chase' with rivals until the last round. Now it's different, more comfortable, we're waiting for the continuation to just confirm our dominance. But even if that's not the case, my coaching motto is to try to look at everything from the positive side, to try to pass it on to the players. And even this whole situation about the suspension of the championship, as unusual as it is, is something you have to welcome ready. When that's the case, it's easier to face all challenges. And this has shown that, just as football is an unpredictable game, what happens off the field is also unpredictable.

"Armed" with optimism and positive energy, with a large point reserve, the Montenegrin coaching staff in the Gulf awaits decisions on the continuation, but the real question is why it is not played only in Kuwait, but also in the Emirates, Qatar, Oman, Bahrain, and Saudi Arabia?

- A real question, but a difficult answer. The situation is so complicated that it is not easy to explain. Like the war in Bosnia - it can be commented on in different ways, from different angles. The very geographical position of the Persian Gulf countries, and the Strait of Hormuz, how beautiful it is, and now they are commenting on how strategically important it is. Instead of enjoying the beauty, developing new things, new specificities, people are destroying and shooting at each other. That is a tragedy - says Jovović.

Tragedy also befell Kuwaiti football, as the captain of Salmiya, the fourth-placed team in the table, was killed during the first days of the war.

- In every team there are several football players who serve in the army and police, who simply have an obligation to the state. I have three of them in the team, who I can't count on now. The fact that the captain of Salmiya was killed at the start forced the Ministry of Sports to make a decision to suspend all sports competitions.

The Arab success map

Saudi Arabia, Jordan, Egypt, Tunisia, Iraq, Qatar, the Emirates and Kuwait - countries in Africa and the Asian Middle East where Nebojša Jovović has worked, where he has already won nine trophies.

Something like an Arabic map of success...

The two countries in which he was champion, in which he was chosen as coach of the year - Jordan and Iraq - are participating in the World Cup, which will be played in the USA, Mexico and Canada in June and July.

- Honestly, I expected them to make a breakthrough, because these are countries where there is an incredible love for football, it can be noticed at every step and borders on obsession. In Iraq, for example, when Real - Barcelona play, it is a real festival, the bars are full, people watch, cheer, and just talk about it. You can drive along the highway in Iraq and see that along its entire length, about 10 kilometers, football is being played, whether on sand, grass, or dirt. In Jordan, it happened that the fans of Faisaliye, who filled the stadium, stayed for several hours after the match, dancing and celebrating the victory. A passion for football that is difficult to describe - says Jovović.

Jordan is at the World Cup for the first time, and Iraq is at the World Cup for the second time, after 1986.

The other Arab countries in which he worked - Qatar, Egypt, Tunisia, the Emirates, Saudi Arabia - are also World Cup countries.

- I was a coach in Qatar for four and a half years, for example they don't have the passion like Iraq or Jordan, but they have a system, they have the best academy. It's no wonder Qatar is the champion of Asia - to do it alongside Japan, Korea, Australia, Iran... is an incredible feat and an indicator of how much football is loved and how much it is progressing in this part of the world.