Football Planet visited Slovenian international Timi Max Elšnik: “But no one will say I play better because I have a podcast…”
Photo: Vid Ponikvar / Sportida
Just after he took off the jersey of Ljubljana’s Olimpija following another rather unsuccessful visit to their city rivals Bravo, and before putting on the gear of the Slovenian national team, Timi Max Elšnik also made time for Planet Football. Just before his departure to Brdo pri Kranju, where the Slovenian national team is preparing for friendly matches against Malta and Portugal, he had a conversation with Nik Brumen.
If we joke a bit to start with – you’re probably glad you’ve played your last game at the ŽAK Stadium in Šiška, right?
The only positive point of that match is that we won’t have to go back there. Now it’s really time to demolish it and build a new one. Hopefully, it will be better then… (laughs) Olimpija last won there before I even signed for them! It was in 2019. So… For a club like ours, and considering we play there twice every season, it’s really unimaginable. No one understands how this is possible and why it’s happening. But we simply couldn’t win there. I don’t think there’s any logical explanation why.
Photo: Nik Moder / Sportida
Do you ever wonder how it’s possible to play in the Prva liga Telemach while counting down to the Euro 2024? Yesterday, ŽAK and Bravo, soon Allianz Arena, Munich, Germany, even Harry Kane.
Once you’re in it, once you’re part of it, it might even be hard to be realistic. Do I deserve it or not? And suddenly becoming part of the starting eleven… But the fact is, we’ve always been united by a common goal. All for the success. And at that moment when dreams were within reach, it didn’t actually matter who would play and who wouldn’t. On the other hand, I was eagerly waiting for my chance, believing I would seize it with both hands. I was also confident I would be ready and not caught off guard. Because if you’re not the right one at that moment, you can quickly cross yourself out.
Was it tough when you suddenly found yourself in the starting eleven? And not in just a friendly match against Andorra…
First and foremost, I didn’t want to reinvent the wheel. I wanted to give the team what was expected of me. I didn’t step out of line, and I would say that was the best possible recipe for me at the time. But I would emphasize the following: more than playing several games on the road to Euro 2024, I’m happy that we actually made it there.
Did your knees shake when Matjaž Kek told you that you would start the game against Denmark? And that after that painful defeat against Finland…
I wouldn’t say my knees were shaking. But the fact is, I was aware of what was offered to me. I told myself: ‘this is it, it’s now or never.’ Either I’m the right one or I’m not. Undoubtedly, it would have been much easier if the circumstances weren’t as they were, but on the other hand, I patiently waited for my chance, and when it came, I knew I was ready. Of course, there was doubt, but at the end of the day, I believed in myself and didn’t burden myself. After all, this is football. And if I could play against Liverpool at nineteen… I was relaxed. Confident. That’s the mindset I had going into the game.
And then just a few months later, you were already the captain of Slovenia. There on the other side of the world. In the United States of America. It’s not just anything, is it?
The national team crest on the chest and the band on the arm. That’s a whole different feeling… And then the anthem. And you’re standing there. First in line. These are childhood dreams. To be the captain of your country… That was a moment I really cherish. I’ll never forget that.
Even the guys who stood in line behind you will never forget that. Was it tough to lead as the captain?
While I, as expected, didn’t feel pressure, it was different for most of the other players. Of course, they were under pressure, after all, an incredible opportunity presented itself to them. The question is, when will it happen again… Everyone wanted to stand out in their own way, to do more, to get noticed.
Did you have any good advice for them?
Primarily a very simple one: be as straightforward as possible, as easy as possible. If you’re like that, you’ll be like that on the field too. And then you’ll prove yourself to the coach most easily. If you try too hard, everything quickly goes wrong.
Have they often pulled you aside, saying, ‘Timi, you’ve already been in the national team, what should we do…’
At times, it seemed to me that the guys from the Slovenian league were afraid to ask, for example, if they could go for a massage, for therapy. Many of them were quite shy. I don’t know how they have these things arranged in their clubs, but these people who are in the national team are there because of the players. But then they were somewhat bored. In America, they were more like tourists, as these guys from Bravo, Koper, and other clubs had too much ‘respect’ for them (laughs). Even if something hurt, they didn’t go to them. Sort of like: ‘What if someone tells the coach I’m in pain?’ When you join, many things go through your head, and I tried to explain to them how the field is the only thing that gives answers to the coach. Everything else is irrelevant, or it’s always essential to use what’s available.
Do you believe that after Euro 2024, you’ll finally change employers?
It’s no secret that I’ve been looking for a way abroad for a long time. In the Slovenian league, you’re limited both in terms of the level of competition, which affects a player’s development, and in terms of finances. Regarding the latter, Slovenia is far behind all these major European leagues… But you only have one career. You play for 10, 15 years, and you also have to create something for your later life. If you spend your entire career in Slovenia, it’s a bit harder. It’s not realistic… Of course, I’m drawn abroad, but here is the club with which I have a contract. Much will depend on them. They probably also count on the European Championship not to let me go too soon… They probably have in mind a bigger profit if I prove myself there. I’ll wait until summer. I hope I’ll stay healthy and get a chance in Germany too.
Photo: United States Soccer Federation
Is it difficult to continue playing in the Prva liga Telemach?
I’ve been in the Slovenian league for four years now. On one side, Prva liga Telemach, on the other Euro 2024. Logically, these things don’t quite go together. If I really play at Euro 2024, I honestly believe that will be enough for Olimpija to let me go abroad. And to convince someone abroad, of course, I have to prove myself. And they have to be willing to pay a few euros for me… As much as Olimpija demands. The fact is that years go by quickly. I’m not 19 or 20 anymore. Today we all know what foreign clubs are looking for… Still, I believe that there will be a place for a 25, 26-year-old Timi Max Elšnik with experience from the European Championship. I hope that will be enough for me to succeed.
But you’ve actually been abroad. How much did the years in England give you?
England gave me a lot. The homeland of football. There you live dreams, see how many clubs, fans… There, I basically learned what professional football means, what it means to live off football. And when you’re thrown from football without pressure into football where every point counts and can mean the coach’s head. Or a contract for the next season… The beauty of football, which was perhaps more emphasized in younger selections, loses its meaning there. You become more mature. It strengthens you. I also saw what professionalism means, taking care of yourself, your body, your psychological preparation. We don’t imagine these things so much in Slovenia. All these experiences taught me something, and they still help me a lot today. Both in the club and in the national team. At nineteen, for example, I played against Liverpool, so why should I be afraid of anything today, why should I feel pressure, if I’ve already been through all that, if I was okay and proved myself. When you go through something like that, you know there’s no reason to doubt yourself. England gave me a lot, and without England, I would undoubtedly be a different footballer today. I don’t know if I would be where I am now.
Did you also learn in England never to give up in the battle for the title? Even if the club in front of you has a 12-point lead?
The fact is that Celje has a significant advantage, everything is in their hands. So… More or less, it depends on them. If they mess it up, well… We’ll see! You definitely go into every match with a desire to win, it’s the same in training. Let alone when it’s for real. It’s in the blood of an athlete, the desire to win is even more present in a club like Olimpija. If we win all 9, 10 matches… We’ll see if that’s enough. Even if we triumph in all, it still doesn’t mean we’ll be first. Celje will be questioned a lot. But we are focused only on ourselves. Every match will be like a final for us. And then…
Did you also learn in England never to give up in the battle for the title? Even if the club in front of you has a 12-point lead?
The fact is, Celje has a significant advantage, everything is in their hands. So… Mostly it depends on them. If they mess up, then… We’ll see! Surely you go into every game with a desire to win, it’s the same in training. Let alone when it really matters. It’s in the blood of an athlete, the desire to win is even more present in a club like Olimpija. If we win all 9, 10 games… We’ll see if that’s enough. Even if we win all, it doesn’t mean we’ll be first. A lot will depend on Celje. But we are focused only on ourselves. Every game will be like a final for us. Then…
Photo: Vid Ponikvar / Sportida
Celje has somehow marked your time at Olimpija.
Since I’ve been at Olimpija, all the highlights of my career have been more or less connected with Celje. Whether I played against Celje or at their stadium. Memories are what they are – some are more pleasant, others less. If Celje wins the title this year, it will be the second time during my time at Olimpija. And that will undoubtedly hurt me. I would rather we were champions more often… We had several situations where we had a nice advantage, where we decided our fate ourselves, but we blew it. But we are the ones who showed how to squander an advantage. So, it’s worth believing. I will hope until the last moment that Celje will repeat what they did a few years ago. That they somehow bring us back into the game… And that I bid farewell to Celje in a positive way (laughs).
Then you’ll be able to write about all this on the Timax portal. Why did you decide to venture into what could be called media waters? What exactly is Timax.si?
First and foremost, it’s a portal where you can find content without any PR or journalistic filters. So sports content as it is. Opinions, emotion, experience. I think it’s entirely different when two footballers talk to each other than when one talks to a journalist. Why did I decide to do this? Because we don’t have it here. And because there is more and more of it abroad. I enjoy following sports abroad, not just football. And I’ve always found it interesting to listen to backstage debates. Because with the help of others’ experiences, you can learn a lot yourself. We didn’t have this here, so I thought maybe Slovenes would be interested in something like this too. And it might inspire someone. For now, I enjoy it, and I hope it will be interesting for as many people as possible to follow.
But when you miss a penalty kick, there will probably be someone who will say it’s Timax’s fault… How much time does it actually take you?
I have nothing to do with it, except when I go there and talk to a guest. But we don’t know about other things, I’ve never been a computer guy, or had experience with cameras, cameras… Others take care of all that, so it doesn’t take much energy or time from me. Last time, for example, I talked to Verbič; for me, it was like meeting for coffee. Before that, I looked a bit at where he played and what he achieved, and that was it. Then, as I said, it was like having coffee. Except that the cameras are on. But we footballers are used to that anyway. I’m lucky to have a top team behind me. If it weren’t for them, I couldn’t even do this.
So because of Timax, Timi Max doesn’t play any worse?
No, no, far from it. I read some sharp comments about it… But interestingly, I actually improved my statistics in the spring part. Maybe I’m playing even better than before. But no one will say I’m playing better because I have a podcast. But the usual critics will, of course, wait for the first mistake. And then say how I’m not mentally present. You accept that. Even bigger footballers with million-dollar contracts record, I don’t know, what… It’s part of the sport. Just like fans, who pay to watch us. And I want to give them certain content to get to know us in a different way. So that we are not just those dolls who ‘stand’ on the football field for 90 minutes.
Who will swap jerseys with Ronaldo?
Honestly? I don’t know. We haven’t discussed that. In this team, hardly anyone swaps jerseys. Or they are too proud to take someone’s jersey… It’s one thing when you come from the Slovenian league, you take a jersey… Some are always playing in Europe, top leagues… Or maybe they are shy (laughs). There was no debate about it. As for Ronaldo… Surely a few guys will volunteer. I don’t know how they’ll arrange it. I won’t interfere with that. I’ll take someone else’s. There are plenty of top-notch footballers.
Excluding Ronaldo, who would you personally prefer to swap jerseys with?
I’m a fan of Guardiola and Manchester City, so… Bernardo Silva. He’s such a football master. When you watch him, you wonder how he manages to do it all. Especially with such a physique and body structure. Maybe with him. Or Ruben Dias. I’ve played with him before; he’s even in my age group. It might be an interesting story if I swapped shirts with him.
Photo: Vid Ponikvar / Sportida
This text was automatically translated using AI.
Author: editorial Football Planet
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