Following Serbia’s yesterday Euro 2024 1-0 loss to England, Dusan Tadic expressed his thoughts on being benched at the start of the game. “I am the captain, the leader. I think I am the best player in this team” Tadic stated. “Of course I should have started. I respect the coach’s decision. If he wants Dusan Tadic to play 30 minutes, so be it.”
🗣Soru: "Tadic neden ilk 11'de değildi?
🗣 Sırbistan Teknik Direktörü Stojkovic: "İkinci yarıda daha diri, daha taze bir Tadic ile oynamak niyetindeydik. Taktiksel bir hamleydi bu." pic.twitter.com/ZU8UMsAJaM— FutbolArena (@futbolarena) June 16, 2024
Serbia’s head coach Dragan Stojković explained the reasoning behind his tactical decision to leave Tadic on the bench at the beginning of the match. “Tadic remained on the bench for tactical reasons – I wanted him to come in fresh during the second 45 minutes. That was our tactic” Stojković commented.
According to a recent SportingPedia report, Tadic is one of only six players at Euro 2024 who has accumulated more than 5,000 playing minutes prior to the start of the tournament. The extensive game time could have influenced Stojković’s decision to initially rest his captain, aiming to preserve his energy for critical moments in the match against England. The Fenerbahce’s player entered the field in the 61 minute, with England already 1-0 up, replacing Aleksandar Mitrovic but was unable to influence the proceedings.