Maribor with a sold-out stadium, Olimpija without a coach, and Ante Šimundža emphasizes: “What’s happening in Ljubljana doesn’t interest us”
Photo: Žan Pak
Maribor already sold out the stadium on Thursday, while Olimpija barely had their first training session of the week on Wednesday. Maribor is on a streak of excellent results, while Olimpija is still without a coach. Maribor is led by an expert who revitalized the purple team, while Olimpija is led by a variety of experts – from conditioning coaches to analysts. It seems that Ante Šimundža can be completely calm ahead of the 157th Eternal Derby, and that it is Olimpija that should be concerned. However…
“If this derby were my first, I would have problems. I’ve been through such things when there was too much euphoria. We’re not talking about the fans. They are the ones who have the right to be euphoric and have all the levers to carry the team. But there should be no euphoria present in us, in decisions and execution. Not in running, not in defending or attacking. Together with my colleagues, we must strive to be calm and pragmatic. I expect a demanding game. Because of external influences, the importance of the game, and that’s how we’re preparing,” Ante Šimundža made it clear to his players that the events at Stožice should not distract them for a moment.
Šimundža: “It’s a privilege”
Ante Šimundža continued regarding Saturday’s showdown with the Ljubljana team for the club’s website: “To be honest, we’re not interested in what’s happening with them. We respect the opponent too much to bother with that. We are thinking about how to transition from one extreme to another and maintain composure, mental readiness in anticipation of the game in front of full stands. Throughout the week, we remained completely focused. It’s not difficult to prepare for the derby because it’s a privilege. It’s always good to compete with them and play such games.”
Maribor fans can be pleased that the team practically has no personnel problems ahead of the game. Only Luka Uskoković and Nemanja Mitrović have been absent from the sidelines for a long time, everyone else is ready for the match, in which the Styrians could take a big step towards securing second place on the Prva liga Telemach table.
This text was automatically translated using AI.
Author: editorial Football Planet
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