FIFA World Cup 2010
Serbia
 SerbiaFootball Association of Serbia (Фудбалски савез Србије) Confederation: UEFA Head coach: Radomir Antić Captain: Dejan Stanković Top scorer: Savo Milošević FIFA ranking: 16 World Cup Appearances: 1 Team Colors: Best Results
World Cup Qualified 2010 |
The Serbian team gained its independence from Montenegro on June 3rd, 2006. The same year, the team played its first official game as an independent country. It took a 3-1 victory as visiting team in a match played in the Czech Republic. Serbia had played as part of the team of Yugoslavia and Serbia-Montenegro, with a first appearance came in the 2006 German World Cup.
The squad is now preparing to travel to South Africa and represents Serbia in the World Cup for the first time as an independent country. If the team demonstrates the skill showed in the qualifying stage, it could very well pass to the second round.
Qualifying Stage
After the raffle for the European qualifying groups, the media and general public opinion moved towards France as leading the group, while Austria, Romania and Serbia should have to fight for second place. But the Serbian team’s performance revealed that being the favorite does not represent any real advantage.
Although the Serbslost the match against the national team of France at St. Denis, the squad, led by veteran Radomir Antic, gave an impressive fight and won its next five games. Later, it obtained its pass to South Africa after rescuing a 1-1 draw at home against the French, and then making great offensive work against Romania, where the team celebrated its qualification for the 2010 World Cup with a 5-0 at Belgrade, the Serbian capital.
Players
Many consider central defender Nemanja Vidic the best defender of the world. While this position has other suitors, it is fair to say that this talented Manchester United defender certainly deserves to be on the list of favorites. The player was selected as the best player in the English Premier League just two years ago. Other strong players include the Serb Nikola Zigic (Valencia), Marko Pantelic (AFC Ajax), Zdravko Kuzmanovic (VfB Stuttgart), Milan Jovanovic (Standard Liege) – all figures that contribute offensively.
Head Coach
The 61-year-old coach Radomir Antic has years of experience in elite European football. He has been leading teams such as Zaragoza, Real Oviedo, Real Madrid and FC Barcelona. In his time as manager of Atletico Madrid he conquered two titles: La Liga and the Copa del Rey, both in the same year. This coach temporarily retired in 2004 when he was the manager of Celta de Vigo. In 2008, the Serbian Federation offered him the national team. He has led the team since then with success.