Drazen got into my face and said "Kid, remember, this is your last play for national team": Sale opened his soul about conflict with Petrovic and revealed why they didn't keep him in Red Star (VIDEO)

Selector of the national team of Serbia gave an extensive interview in which he looked back at some legendary stories that are being retold 30 years later

Serbian basketball selector Aleksandar Djordjevic gave an interview for the Sport Club in which he talked about many current affairs, but also details of his rich career, and some legendary stories that are still being retold today, after thirty years.

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Those are the stories from the very beginning of his career, which could have gone in other direction if the stayed in Red Star, and if the people who ran the club hadn't made one of the largest mistakes in the history of the club.

They proclaimed Djordjevic as a player who has no perspective on Little Kalemegdan, so he went to Partizan, the rest is history...

Djordjevic said that he actually ended up in Zvezda and left them.

BOZA MALJKOVIC WAS THE FIRST TO SELECT ME WITH THE HELP OF FOOTBALL 

- I was in elementary school "Marko Oreskovic" at the time and some section began, all the schools had those sections, and this one was with Red Star. My first coach was Boza Maljkovic who was training younger teams at the time. He came, he chose, 40 of us came up, he started with some basket practices and he just took the football and threw it on the field and watched us who played football well. He chose 20 of us who played football well and who have some sense for basketball. 

- So he chose me and I trained in that school for the first few years, it was some Red Star's selection, we were not some apprentices or similar since that selection went to Radnicki and I played for cadet or pioneer selections of Radnicki, and I spent three years with them.

RED STAR DIDN'T WANT ME, THEY WANTED A TALL PLAYMAKER, THEY TOLD ME I HAVE NO PERSPECTIVE WITH THEM 

- The coach there was Ivan Miljkovic the Finn, and from the players, there was Nesa Ilic, we played together for three years. That Radnicki fell apart, there was no more money for younger selections, so we trained on the Red Cross for few years, in winter, outside. First, we got brooms and we played in puddles. The entire generation fell apart and we all went to Red Star or Partizan. Our coach went to Red Star, that is where he got his job, Zdravko Kubat was the coordinator of the all younger selections, Nebojska Ilic and I went with him to Red Star, we were close there, 15-16 years old, at the door to be picked for the first teams.

- There were playmakers in that generation that were 2 meters tall, Aleksandar Trifunovic, Rade Milutinovic, they were forced into that position. Red Star was full of "small" playmakers, Zoran Radovic, Srdjan Dabic, Steva Karadzic, Nikolic who was a shooter, Sretenovic, and those were short playmakers and they wanted to make someone atypical, someone else, and after 10-15 days, I was told by coach Finn, over Kubat, that I was not the player who has perspective and that if I wanted to stay, I could, but it was up to me. 

- And I went to the club I was cheering for and where I wanted to go sooner, but I didn't because of my relations with the coach, and the relations with the generation I grew up with. I went to Partizan and I started playing for the first team after a month. 

- Earlier when I talked about this it didn't hurt as much personally, my vanity was hurt, but now I absolutely understand - concluded Aleksandar Djordjevic, and then looked back at one more legendary story everybody is speaking about 28 years later.

CONFLICT WITH DRAZEN AFTER WHICH I WASN'T INVITED INTO THE NATIONAL TEAM

- Also, not inviting me to the list of 16 players in 1989 before European Championship by Duda Ivkovic who was the coach then, I was so furious and struck back then. Actually, I understand now that offensively oriented playmaker like me, paired with the best player of Yugoslavia at the time, Drazen Petrovic, had no sense, but the other type of playmaker with him should be done. 

There was a lot of talk about the fight with Drazen and his brother Aca Petrovic, and Djordjevic explained what really happened.

- They didn't beat me, I tried beating them, I don't know if I succeeded or not but... 

- We lost the game in Zagreb after two extra times, I think that it was some semi finals, Drazen fell out in one of those extra times for 5 points, and after the game he got into my face and said "and you kid, you will wonder when will you play for national team again. Never again", he turned around and left, and I started going after him, cursing him, insulting him, everybody held me... 

- And since then, that year, I was really not in the national team, because of that or something else, I don't know, but it happened to me, so it wasn't so pleasant, even though we had great relationship, but because of some selfishness of us kids who dared to attack that mighty Cibona in that time, him in that position, his brother who was also in the national team, I have no idea, but that is some truth - concluded Aleksandar Djordjevic.

Watch the entire interview, and the parts where he speaks about Red Star and Drazen are between 7.28 and 13.30.

(Telegraf.co.uk)