New Partizan boss Aleksandar Stanojevic talked to journalists at Partizan training camp in Slovenia.
Former Partizan player and third-time coach commented on CL round 2 qualifier draw.
“Dynamo Kyiv had seven internationals. But, Dynamo is still a better draw compared to Fenerbahce. I don`t mind if we are not going to play against Mourinho`s team. As I worked in Turkey, I know a lot about Fenerbahce and it`s so hard to play there and win”,
Stanojevic also wants to see Partizan competing in one of UEFA competitions group stages.
“We have to play Europe and to battle for the domestic title. Anything below that is a failure. We must not look for excuses or more time. Coach does need two transfer windows to make the squad he wants but there`s no excuses. We must play in Europe, one way or another”.
There`s 36 players training in Slovenia.
“We have lots of players, even lots of us from coaching team. We have to focus on youngsters a bit, to see them all. We also have some youths we didn`t take to Slovenia and we`ll look at them later on. We`ll have 23 or 24 players max once we go to Russia for a pre-season tournament. After that, we`ll see who we can count on for the upcoming season.
Team will clearly suffer changes before the season`s kick-off.
“Some players will go out on loan, others will train with youths while someone might cancel the contract. There`s a plan for every single player. I followed Partizan as a fan last season but I never thought o would be back. Now, it`s different when you work with these players, when you set demands to them and see their reaction to it. You watched a player last season on a TV screen and you liked how he plays but now it might turn out he cannot meet your demands or the other way around. That`s why pre-season preps are there in place”.
Stanojevic hinted arrival of at least two new signings within couple of days.
“We have more players we would like to sign and the negotiations are ongoging. I think we need more players in defence, more firmness at the back. That`s the urgent matter. I expect those two players to join us within two or three days”.
Partizan boss also wants more academy graduates in the team.
“We have too many foreign players. But, I just arrived here and it`s hard to make big changes on such a short notice. We want as many domestic players as possible, Partizan youths especially. So, we will make a project involving FK Teleoptik and our youth academy”.
Stanojevic would like to have a domestic left-back signing as well.
“Domestic left-backs are hard to get as they are too expensive. There are few of them in our league but if we find young foreign left-back, we`ll sign him too”.
