Prior to the start of their first-ever World Cup finals, the Bosnia and Herzegovina national team were attracting plenty of praise. Some found the narrative appealing -- a country that had been at war less than 20 years previously was now on its way to Brazil. But others focused on the football. Safet Sušić had his Zmajevi playing in an attractive, attacking manner. In qualifying, they'd finished even on points with Greece, but with a plus-25 goal advantage, they secured a spot in the finals.
Safet Sušić has made a mess of the Bosnian national team
Edin Džeko’s injury further illustrates how the Zmajevi coach is leading a once-promising team into the abyss.
Stu Forster
But in Brazil, Sušić lost his mettle. After approaching the first game against Argentina with the same attacking mentality, the coach started to get ... creative. That's a polite way of stating what most fans were thinking, which is that Sušić had more or less lost his mind. The formation shifted, quality players were left on the bench, and others were played out of position. Despite their initial promise, Bosnia were eliminated after two matches.
Fast-forward six months. Despite the frustration of fans -- and murmurings in the dressing room -- Sušić remains in charge of the national team. Yet discontent is the least of the Zmajevi’s worries. With just two points from three matches, Bosnia sit second from bottom in their Euro 2016 qualifying group. Absent a radical shift, this team won’t be qualifying for their first ever European Championships.
Bosnia prepare to head to Israel a shadow of their former selves. Sead Kolašinac, Sejad Salihović, and Vedad Ibišević were all injured prior to the squad announcement for the Israel match, while Tino-Sven Sušić and Edin Džeko both were forced to pull out due to injury. Recent news suggests goalkeeper Asmir Begović may not be fit, either.
Despite their place in Group B, despite the injury crisis, Sušić still refuses to alter his approach. Ibišević was ruled out back in October after he fractured his foot, yet the manager refused to add another forward to his list, calling only Džeko for the Israel match. The plan backfired, as the Manchester City man picked up an injury at the weekend, and will not be available for the national team.
It’s what happened after Džeko’s knock that truly encapsulates the crisis Bosnia’s coach has brought upon the side. When learning of the injury, Sušić said, “If he can’t play, we should make peace with the fact that it’s going to be very hard to win in Israel. We will try to win, but we’re going there to try not to lose.”
Bosnia are languishing in fifth, and yet the coach has given up hope of all three points before the game even begins. What’s worse, after Džeko was officially ruled out of the squad, Sušić chose to replace him not with a target man, but with Rijeka winger Zoran Kvržić, a 26-year-old with a mere two caps.
Yet alternative strikers do exist. Milan Đurić, who previously played for the Bosnia Under-21s, scored for Cesena last weekend, and has a style of play that bears remarkable resemblance to that of Džeko. Aidin Mahmutović has never been capped for Bosnia, but is now back from a year-long injury and has already scored six goals for Teplice in the Czech Premier League.
Sušić, though, does not like to tread into the unknown. He has already acknowledged that he prefers the players that lead Bosnia to their first World Cup appearance, leading him to rarely look outside that group -- despite the large number out with injury.
It appears the coach suffers from delusions of grandeur as well. When asked about a lack of strikers in the team, Sušić said, “Barcelona zna ponekad igrati bez klasičnog napadača, a itekako su ofanzivni. Bayern isto tako igra sa jednim napadačem itd.” In other words, Bosnia doesn’t need a striker, because Barcelona manage to score a lot of goals without one. And Bayern, too, plays with just one forward.
Bosnia play Israel on Sunday, November 16. But even if they fail to transform into Barcelona or Bayern upon arrival in Haifa, it’s unlikely anything will change. There’s no plan in place and no money available to replace the coach. And it’s become blindingly obvious that Sušić himself will not deviate from his script.
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