It's time for other things in life, Itana and Ivona said goodbye to the "lionesses"

At every gathering of Montenegrin women's handball players since Suzana Lazović became the coach, there have been new names, debutants, young players who are the future of the "lionesses".

At the same time, some of the more experienced players said goodbye to the red jersey, and two more decided to follow in their footsteps - Itana Grbić and Ivona Pavicevic ended their careers in the Montenegrin national team.

This was confirmed by coach Lazović before Montenegro's first training session ahead of the last two matches in the European Championship qualifiers.

"They chose to dedicate themselves to other things in life, but there are young hopes here and the future is up to them," emphasized Suzana Lazović.

The list for the matches against Portugal and the Faroe Islands includes debutant Anđelina Orbović, as well as other hopefuls Martina Knežević, Anđela Guberinić and Natalija Lekić, as well as goalkeeper Anastasija Babović, who returned to the "lionesses".

"I believe that the youth at this and every future gathering will contribute to making up for any shortcomings we may have had," said the coach.

A place in the ninth European Championship since the restoration of independence has already been secured, but Đurđina Jauković and her teammates want a good end to the qualifications, as well as a better position in the standings.

"Every game is important, first place in the group would make the first phase of the EHF Euro easier for us," Lazović is clear.

The "Lionesses" play away against Portugal on Thursday at 20 p.m., and then host the Faroe Islands on Sunday (18 p.m.).

"We have secured a place, but we will do our best to finish both games in the right way. We want to be satisfied with the results and for our hopes to show how much we can count on them in the coming period," added Suzana.

The coach also has an idea on how to properly prepare these hopefuls for joining the national team.

"I proposed that the B national team, consisting of juniors and cadets, participate in the Regional League (starting in the fall), in which a coach from the national team would work with them," concluded Suzana Lazović.