Bessone: I Want to See Personality and Confidence from the Team

On Saturday at 9 p.m., our team will officially kick off the new season with an away match against Gorica. Speaking to the media on the eve of the match, head coach Federico Bessone reflected on the completed pre-season preparations, the current situation within the squad, and what he hopes to see from Osijek in the upcoming competitive period.

I am happy and satisfied with the squad I have at my disposal. I am pleased with everything the players have shown so far. They are a group of very talented footballers who have managed to adapt to some of my demands, which was evident during the pre-season matches. Essentially, I want to see two Osijeks in one team. First, the Osijek that has the ball in possession, showing personality whenever we have the ball at our feet. We have good players who are definitely capable of doing that, but we need to finish our attacks and do so more efficiently. Secondly, what the team has been lacking recently is personality when we are out of possession. We have to be ready for transitions and know how to respond in the right way.

The coach only wants fully fit players on the pitch

Asked about the team's lack of efficiency in front of goal, which troubled Osijek last season, Bessone said he believes the upcoming period will tell a very different story.

In football, these things happen. Sometimes you create plenty of chances but fail to score. However, the important thing is to change the mentality so that conceding a goal from a transition does not bring the team down, but instead motivates them to attack even harder. I already have my starting eleven in mind, but I do not want to talk about it yet. I have not even informed the players. I still need to see what condition each player is in because I only want fully fit players on the pitch. Jurišić is back with us and is ready to play, while Toure only returned to full training this week, so it is more realistic to expect him to be in contention for next week's match.

The media representatives were also interested in what the team might still be lacking in terms of completing the squad...

Perhaps we are not fully covered at right-back. We currently only have Mustafić and the young Posavec in that position, so that could potentially become an issue. As for the other positions, I can say that I am satisfied. The fact that the team struggled to score last season does not concern me at all. We have new strikers, the experienced Jakupović, and plenty of quality in midfield, so I am not worried.

Several young players are seriously in contention

Federico once again emphasized how pleased he has been with his time at Opus Arena so far, particularly with what he has learned about the potential and quality of the squad.

I am happy to be working here and satisfied with everything I have seen over the past month. As for the young players, I can say that Kolarik is an excellent centre-back. Kalem has also shown tremendous potential and already behaves like a true professional despite being only 18 years old. In my opinion, Bukvić has the best left foot in the Croatian league. Unfortunately, he has not managed to convert some of his chances in front of goal so far, but with a few adjustments he will certainly improve that aspect of his game as well. Then we have Ježić and Farkaš, who are both very talented and represent the future of this club. The same can be said about Ljatifi, who will certainly be given the opportunity to prove himself.

What has he learned about Gorica, and what will be particularly important during Saturday's match?

I watched their matches during pre-season. There can always be surprises, but the fact is that they have the same head coach and nothing significant has changed. As for our work this week, everything went well and I believe the team has understood my demands, both with and without the ball. For me, the players' self-confidence is the most important thing, but I also have to prove myself as a coach by doing my job well. I sincerely hope we will return from Velika Gorica with a positive result. We are ready for the match, and it is very important to achieve the best possible result, also with the aim of bringing our supporters back to the stadium.