Dejan Savićević: Lovely Left Footers

Some would sneer a little at the word ‘Genius’ being used to describe a footballer. In English football the word is attributed to players such as Wayne Rooney and Paul Gascoigne; players who can barely string a sentence together, players who look and play like fans in shirts and players who probably wouldn’t survive in any non-football related profession. Those who sneer at the word being used for that exceptional, rare player are completely missing the point, though. While the word ‘Genius’ is typically associated with those in academic spheres (the Einsteins and Newtons of this world) the word has also been attributed to those who have excelled in non-academic spheres (the Beethovens and Picassos of this world). The essence of genius is in its rarity; a person who is exceptionally intelligent or creative.

If we go by that definition, then, there are a rare group of footballers who are can be categorised as geniuses on the field, notwithstanding their academic intelligence. Michael Laudrup portrayed a level of vision which was on par with the greatest artists. Zinedine Zidane was A 21st Century Portrait, possessing the grimace of a serial killer and a tricoloured bald-patch, his big-game performances a series of undeniable masterpieces. Ronaldinho, at his peak, was a flowing salsa-dance of triple sombreros, able to place shots which were able to ride an onrushing blue wave in his vicinity where gaps were limited.

And then there was Dejan Savićević.

You can read the rest of this piece at Lovely Left Foot.

Red Star Belgrade 1991: Remembering A Galaxy of Counter-Attacking Football

“We’re fucked.” That was the apparent scouting summary that returned to Ibrox when Rangers boss Graeme Souness sent his assistant – Walter Smith – to watch Red Star Belgrade ahead of their 1990-1991 European Cup second round tie.

The Balkans has produced some wonderfully-gifted footballers from the rugged and volatile Gheorge Hagi to the more elegant and darting-around, artistic creativity in the form of Luka Modric.

Yet only once has a team from the region won the European Cup – that team was Red Star Belgrade (otherwise known as ‘Crvena Zvezda’ if you’re cultured).In a football game that is becoming increasingly globalised it’s difficult to imagine that another Balkan team will better their continental achievements. As an avid football fan I have heard of the Red Star Belgrade team – even saw some of their players play in their pomp. In fact, I even grew up on the streets of Belgrade (sorry, couldn’t resist a Robbie Keane joke). But I never had the chance to see them live.

Red Star Belgrade are widely regarded as a forgotten team by many football scholars (as contradicting as that sounds). So I decided to remember them. I conducted an intense scouting mission for classic footage of Red Star Belgrade in action and I managed to watch three matches – both legs of the 1991 European Cup semi-final against Bayern Munich and the final against Marseilles.

Starting XI