Maribor coach Ante Šimundza happy with star player, but… Josip Iličić still not ready for the full 90 minutes
Photo: Blaž Weindorfer / Sportida
How well did Josip Iličić make the most of his national team break? For the former Serie A star, a few days of intensive training with no other commitments certainly came in handy. And also Ante Šimundza, the new coach
Maribor
, pointed out that Josip Iličić has done a good job.
However, it will obviously be some time before the former Slovenian international, who played 79 games and scored 16 goals in the national colours, is ready to spend the full 90 minutes on the pitch.
“Iličić’s training process, which he is doing very vigorously, has led to less fatigue. Similar to Soudani. Josip Iličić is well aware that you cannot play top football without fitness. He is a top footballer. But if you’re not physically fit, you can’t be a top footballer. These two things coincide. It’s exactly the same with younger players,” he told a press conference ahead of the match with
Bravo
Ante Šimundža emphasised.
The former coach of Mura and Ludogorets added: “His head is in place. He is aware that he is suffering. That he was not at the right level because of things like this and other things. I will say it again: what I like most is that he is not happy with himself when he is not ready. His fitness is better than when I arrived, but it is not yet at a level where he can play 90 minutes.“
This text was automatically translated using AI.
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1. SNL
Maribor
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