‘Dalić called me and asked about Hrgović. Kalinić will defend in Varaždin, and it’s still early for dreams’

Before visiting Hajduk u Be yours came very close to the record of 12 consecutive games without defeat, which he holds Ivan Katalinić and what would the current Hajduk coach do Gennaro Gattuso could have equalized tomorrow. But if you ask Gattuso, he wouldn’t even talk about the record for a single second, for him the team and its presentation are in the foreground, and the main concern is how to put together a pair of stoppers without getting injured. Prpića and cardboard Charlieas well as who to put in goal, on Lučića or Kalinića.

Before the press conference, the coach of Hajduk supported all the victims in Valencia which was struck by a catastrophic flood and tragedy.

– My thoughts are with them, I wish them to get out of this tragedy that befell them as soon as possible.

Lučić or Kalini, who will defend and what about Antunov, whom you did not take to Bjelovar?

– Lučić he has a small problem with the lož he hasn’t trained and we won’t risk it. Lovre is completely ready, I didn’t take him to Bjelovar because of the death of his friend and coach Gabrić, he was badly hurt but now everything is fine. Nothing special happens with Mata, I make selections every week, as I left Livaja on the bench as planned, Trajkovski started and Mate stayed in Split.

Koprivnica: Slaven Belupo and Hajduk met in the 10th round of SuperSport HNL |

Photo: Slavko Midzor/PIXSELL

What kind of host do you expect, Vara&zcarondin caused you problems in Split as well?

– I agree, Varadin is a top team, they know how to play, they are well integrated, they caused us a lot of problems, especially in pressing, they have good young players, good wings that can easily get you into trouble. They also have flaws, we will try to take advantage of that, we must play and achieve a positive result.

Ivan Jurić was supposed to be the coach of Hajduk, now he is in Roma, is that too much of a task for him?

– I have to say that he is a top coach, which he proved in Turin and Verona. I remember the matches with him, I barely drew with Napoli in the last round, and in the end I ended up fifth instead of second, so I remember him badly because of that.

In Varaždin is one of the worst pitches in the league, will it affect your intention of play from the back line or will you change?

– We cannot change our style, but we can adapt it. We have made an analysis, additional caution is necessary, a few more long balls… It is the same field for us and them, we must be ready, we will adapt and play a big game.

Hajduk and Slaven Belupo met in the 1st round of SuperSport HNL. |

Photo: Ivo Cagalj/PIXSELL

The stadium is sold out, a lot of Hajduk fans are expected. No matter how common it is, it’s not quite ‘normal’?

– I feel great pride, the tickets were sold out in a few hours, the phone is constantly ringing in the club, everyone is asking for tickets, and that is a big obligation for us. When everything goes well, there is a lot of cheering, but not everything always goes well. It is logical that the fans dream of winning the championship, but we must not dream but work. We only have the goal of going step by step into each next game and only five to six games before the end can we start dreaming, not before that. It is a great pleasure and obligation for me when we play in front of a large number of our fans.

You have sweet worries, Durdov is coming back, Bamba is here, Sigur deserved the opportunity with his performances… Have you decided who you will start with tomorrow?

– As a coach, I have the pleasure of having as many games as possible. That makes me happy. Bamba was out of action for a month and a half, he played well, then he was absent, now he is back. Same as Trajkovski. They did not enter the game well, but they contributed. Nobody memes čarobic sticksć to playč which was out of competition immediately included. Bruno was injured, he received an unpleasant blow to the quadriceps, Sigur is versatile and it is a pleasure to have such a player who can cover a couple of positions at a good level. He also had a couple of commitments with the national team, he traveled, he didn’t prepare and we haven’t seen him in full yet, but I’m glad that the time is approaching when all three will be ready, and that makes me happy as a coach. All three have different characteristics, Bamba likes to play one on one and the other two like to add and subtract. Sigur is dynamic, knows how to play and can play any position. He is dynamic both in his head and in his legs…

Mladost Ždralovi and Hajduk met in the round of 16 of the SuperSport Croatian Football Cup |

Photo: Damir Spehar/PIXSELL

For the last few titles, Hajduk has won championships in matches with Varaždin. Now it is far from over, but this is a very important game and three very important points?

– For me, all points are equally important. A difficult match awaits us, all that makes a match is the field, rivals and fans. We will see – – we will see how it will be, there is no opponent in this league that you can slap well. It’s rare, when someone is behind and in a bad way…. Varaždin likes to outplay, but with one click they can become very vertical, they have good wings and there is a lot of emphasis on that. Three points would be very good for us, but we won’t talk about that now. I know that championships were won in Varaždin, I saw the footage, I also know about the statistics that are on our side, but we are going to play a real game, and if we do so, we will win.

Mladost Ždralovi and Hajduk met in the round of 16 of the SuperSport Croatian Football Cup |

Photo: Damir Spehar/PIXSELL

Victories give confidence, and confidence gives new victories. That kotač continues to spin, what do you think, will this match depend more on your game or on Varaždin’s game?

– That is a difficult question. I dedicate 20% of my time to my opponent, the rest of the time I dedicate to us. We don’t only analyze them, our games have video Vara, most of them. three days, but only this morning we sat down and explained to them what and how Varaždin does. At the beginning of my career, I devoted myself more to my opponent, but now not so much, it is more important to me that we do what we want. We have prepared for Varaždin, but we dedicate ourselves only to ourselves.

Zagreb: Rudeš and Hajduk met in the 23rd round of SuperSport HNL |

Photo: Luka Stanzl/PIXSELL (illustrative photo)

You don’t want to talk about the championship title, are you happy about the fact that Hrgović received an invitation from the national team, mostly thanks to you and the position you found for him?

– I quickly realized what kind of city this is, a little positive energy is needed to ignite everything. Thousands of fans travel to the match, squeeze into cars to get to Varanasi, people want success and trophies and we have to be ready for both the positive and the negative. I want to see this kind of enthusiasm and trust among the fans even when we are not doing well. We will overcome the crisis more easily with support and positivity. We will not win only because our name is Hajduk, but because we work hard and well. As for Šimun Hrgovi, the selector Zlatko Dali called me, who knew what kind of game it was, but he was interested in what Šimun was like as a person. I told him that he is of great quality both as a player and as a person, he reminds me a lot of the players of Juventus Pessotto and Birindelli. These are people who can equally play in the park on the grass, and on the asphalt next to the school, in Serie A, and in the Champions League… He is young and plays like a veteran. Šimun will not play for 10, but he will never play below average. This is Šimun Hrgović. These are the characteristics you are born with, and he was born that way and continues that way – Gattuso concluded.