Where did Admir Bristrić go? Under Riera’s leadership he showed great promise, but in September, in 1. SNL Henriques didn’t offer a minute

Published on 29. September 2023 29. September 2023

Joao Henriques has been complaining about the hard rhythm of the last few games and after the match with Bravo he was furious at the Football Association of Slovenia (NZS). If someone wants to “kill” them because they have to play every three days… On the other hand, the trainer of Olimpija as a tick, sticks to certain player choices from which he hardly deviates. Although it has a very wide playing staff, there are also players who don’t actually play or play very, very little. One of them is Admir Bristrić.

The only 20-year-old forward from Bosnia and Herzegovina moved to Ljubljana last summer from Rijeka and, under the guidance of former coach Alberto Riera, quickly offered the thought that he could undoubtedly be an important reinforcement for Olimpija in the long run. In his first season in Slovenia, Admir Bristrić played 14 league matches, scoring 4 times. He shone against Gorica, scoring two goals in a 4:3 win, and was also among the scorers in the eternal derby with Maribor, where the Dragons confirmed their title of national champions in April this year.

Admir Bristric — Photo by Matic Klanšek Velej / Sportida

After half a year of adjusting to the new environment, it seemed that Admir Bristrić would enter the new season as one of Olimpija’s key men in attack. But although he was getting a few more chances to play, he has now been completely sidelined by Joao Henriques. He was not even in the squad for the last three league games, missing the matches against Maribor, Bravo and also Koper, who drew 1:1 with Olimpija last night in Stožice.

In September, he was only on the bench once in the Telemach First League(Mura), and the only game he played in that month was the European Premiere against Lille. In France, the youngster actually found himself in Olimpija’s starting XI and played 69 minutes, but it would be utopian to expect him to make a serious impact against a club from the elite Ligue 1.

Admir Bristrić is sitting in the stands and bored…

Joao Henriques in 1. SNL trusts its two compatriots much more in attack. Rui Pedro has started the last seven games in Olimpija’s starting eleven, Pedro Lucas has been given a chance in every league game this season, Nemanja Motika and Mustafa Nukić are in the rotation, and now Raul Florucz is back. Admir Bristrić, meanwhile, is sitting in the stands of Slovenian stadiums, bored during the battles for first league points.

It’s true that Joao Henriques can’t be faulted for his attacking play, the Dragons are the most efficient team in the league, but still, with the hectic pace of the games and the public moaning about fatigue, it’s strange to say the least that a 20-year-old footballer with a significant to the sales team Potential (Admir Bristrić is, after all, a member of the young BiH national team) received exactly … zero minutes to prove himself on the first league pitch in September.