Marked for Aleksa Čolović
From our football correspondent
Uneasy
The dugout14 May 2029
news_b_frozen_out_of_the_side
Market14 May 2029
The clubs have agreed terms, and what remains is formality: a medical, a photograph, a signature. Nobody at Novi Pazar is pretending he will be back in the shirt.
Squad14 May 2029
Driton Camaj and a teammate said things this week that will take longer than a week to unsay. It was not about football, and both of them play on Saturday.
The dugout14 May 2029
“I pick players who do the work. All of it.” No name was spoken; every camera still turned to Franklin Tebo Uchenna, and the manager let it.
Squad14 May 2029
A row about effort at Novi Pazar
Somebody said out loud what several people thought about how hard another man trains, and Jovan Marinković was in the middle of it. The one dressing-room argument that is genuinely about football.
The dugout14 May 2029
Every manager keeps a short list in his head of the men he wants on the pitch when the stakes rise, and it is never published. The team sheets for the big afternoons say Ivan Davidović is on it.
Back issues
From our football correspondent
Uneasy
The dugout16 Apr 2029
news_b_frozen_out_of_the_side
The dugout16 Apr 2029
“I remember the meeting. I remember exactly what was promised in it.” Novi Pazar may remember it differently, which is precisely the problem.
Market16 Apr 2029
Aleksa Čolović has one foot out of the door
Terms are settled between the clubs and the rest is paperwork and a photograph. Around Novi Pazar they have already started talking about him in the past tense.
Squad16 Apr 2029
Driton Camaj and a teammate said things this week that will take longer than a week to unsay. It was not about football, and both of them play on Saturday.
Squad16 Apr 2029
A row about effort at Novi Pazar
Somebody said out loud what several people thought about how hard another man trains, and Luka Bijelović was in the middle of it. The one dressing-room argument that is genuinely about football.
The dugout16 Apr 2029
Ivan Davidović has become a man the manager trusts
Nobody at Novi Pazar will say this on the record and the team sheets have been saying it for weeks. There is a small group in every squad who get picked when the fixture is difficult, and he has joined it.
From our football correspondent
Uneasy
Market26 Mar 2029
“This is not anger. I have thought about it for months, and nothing that has happened lately changed my mind.” The request is on a desk at Novi Pazar, and it is not being withdrawn.
The dugout26 Mar 2029
“I was told what my role would be, and I signed on that basis. It has not happened.” A grievance with a date attached is the hardest kind to settle.
Squad26 Mar 2029
Driton Camaj was at the centre of it, and by the time it was pulled apart there were three or four others involved. Training grounds are small places and long seasons make them smaller.
Squad26 Mar 2029
A row about effort at Novi Pazar
Somebody said out loud what several people thought about how hard another man trains, and Luka Bijelović was in the middle of it. The one dressing-room argument that is genuinely about football.
The dugout26 Mar 2029
“I pick players who do the work. All of it.” No name was spoken; every camera still turned to Benji Wetshi, and the manager let it.
The dugout26 Mar 2029
“Thirty minutes, door closed, everything said. We shook hands after.” Whatever was in the room stayed in the room, and Aleksa Kuljanin trained the next morning like a man with less to carry.
Market26 Mar 2029
Every press conference now starts and ends the same way: with Bogdan Marinković’s future. The manager has run out of new ways to say nothing.
The dugout26 Mar 2029
It is never announced and it is entirely visible: the biggest afternoons of the season keep containing him. A press box works this out long before anybody at the club confirms a word of it.
Squad26 Mar 2029
The training reports on Daan Erkelens are not good
A bad Saturday is forgiven; a bad Tuesday is chosen. Standards have slipped and in a building where everybody watches everybody, it has been noticed.
From our football correspondent
Uneasy
The dugout19 Mar 2029
news_b_frozen_out_of_the_side
Market19 Mar 2029
Only the photograph left for Aleksa Čolović
Fee agreed, terms agreed, medical booked. Aleksa Čolović will be somebody else’s player by the weekend, and around Novi Pazar the goodbyes have quietly begun.
Squad19 Mar 2029
Driton Camaj and a teammate said things this week that will take longer than a week to unsay. It was not about football, and both of them play on Saturday.
Squad19 Mar 2029
A row about effort at Novi Pazar
Somebody said out loud what several people thought about how hard another man trains, and Luka Bijelović was in the middle of it. The one dressing-room argument that is genuinely about football.
The dugout19 Mar 2029
“Nobody here is above being told.” It was not said with a name attached, but the dressing room can count, and so can everybody who was listening.
The dugout19 Mar 2029
Ivan Davidović has become a man the manager trusts
Nobody at Novi Pazar will say this on the record and the team sheets have been saying it for weeks. There is a small group in every squad who get picked when the fixture is difficult, and he has joined it.
From our football correspondent
Uneasy
The dugout19 Feb 2029
Aleksa Kuljanin: that is not what I was promised
“Things were said to me before I signed. I am not going to repeat them, but I remember all of them.” Novi Pazar have not answered, which is an answer of sorts.
The dugout19 Feb 2029
news_b_frozen_out_of_the_side
Market19 Feb 2029
Only the photograph left for Aleksa Čolović
Fee agreed, terms agreed, medical booked. Aleksa Čolović will be somebody else’s player by the weekend, and around Novi Pazar the goodbyes have quietly begun.
Squad19 Feb 2029
Driton Camaj and a teammate said things this week that will take longer than a week to unsay. It was not about football, and both of them play on Saturday.
The dugout19 Feb 2029
“I pick players who do the work. All of it.” No name was spoken; every camera still turned to Veljko Mirosavić, and the manager let it.
Squad19 Feb 2029
Andrej Popović falls out with a teammate over standards
The oldest argument in any dressing room and the only one that is genuinely about football: one man thinks another is not putting enough in. It is also the row a manager privately does not mind having happened.
Market19 Feb 2029
Aleksa Kuljanin is free to find somewhere else
“I was told straight, and I would rather have it straight.” The manager at Novi Pazar has been clear about where Aleksa Kuljanin stands, which is more than many ever get.
Market19 Feb 2029
“We are a long way apart, and pretending otherwise helps nobody.” Neither side is close, and the calendar is not on the club's side.
Squad19 Feb 2029
“Some mornings you wake up and you are still a long way from everything you know.” It is not the football and it never was; Novi Pazar are dealing with a man who wants a different country.
From our football correspondent
Uneasy
Squad29 Jan 2029
25 goals and a season average of 7.39. Form like that gets noticed well beyond this town.
Boardroom29 Jan 2029
He will play here until the summer and then walk out of the door for free, having already signed elsewhere. Supporters will manage the first part of that sentence; it is the second they will struggle with.
Squad29 Jan 2029
Driton Camaj was at the centre of it, and by the time it was pulled apart there were three or four others involved. Training grounds are small places and long seasons make them smaller.
Transfer targets29 Jan 2029
The approach was made and the answer came back in a sentence. There is no number on the table because there was no number that would have been enough.
Match27 Jan 2029
It finished 2‑0, and it was Driton Camaj’s afternoon: on the scoresheet when it mattered, and the reason the points belong to Novi Pazar.
Player ratings29 Jan 2029
Driton Camaj was on a different afternoon to everybody else
8.29. There are performances a supporter describes to somebody who was not there and cannot quite convey; this was one, and the number does not help either.
Squad29 Jan 2029
Words at Novi Pazar training over how hard people work
Somebody said out loud what several people had been thinking. Andrej Popović is at the centre of it, and the squad will now find out whether the standard rises or the pair of them simply stop speaking.
Player ratings29 Jan 2029
Axel Urie was on a different afternoon to everybody else
8.02. There are performances a supporter describes to somebody who was not there and cannot quite convey; this was one, and the number does not help either.
The dugout29 Jan 2029
“Nobody here is above being told.” It was not said with a name attached, but the dressing room can count, and so can everybody who was listening.
In brief
-
Player ratings
Luka Bijelović beats them one at a time
-
Transfer targets
A loan move for Jordi Kuange is in the works
-
The dugout
The manager’s verdict
From our football correspondent
Uneasy
Squad22 Jan 2029
Driton Camaj is in the form of his life
A season average of 7.37 with 24 goals behind it. Opponents have started planning around him, which is the sincerest compliment football pays.
Transfer targets22 Jan 2029
Fee done, terms next for Ethan Hoard
Novi Pazar and OFK Beograd have settled on $560.0K. The rest belongs to the player and his agent, and a supporter who has watched one of these before knows not to buy the shirt yet.
The dugout22 Jan 2029
news_b_frozen_out_of_the_side
Market22 Jan 2029
Only the photograph left for Aleksa Čolović
Fee agreed, terms agreed, medical booked. Aleksa Čolović will be somebody else’s player by the weekend, and around Novi Pazar the goodbyes have quietly begun.
Squad22 Jan 2029
Driton Camaj and a teammate said things this week that will take longer than a week to unsay. It was not about football, and both of them play on Saturday.
Squad22 Jan 2029
Luka Bijelović falls out with a teammate over standards
The oldest argument in any dressing room and the only one that is genuinely about football: one man thinks another is not putting enough in. It is also the row a manager privately does not mind having happened.
Transfer targets22 Jan 2029
Novi Pazar asked and Radnicki 1923 said no without discussing a figure. It is the least ambiguous answer in football and the one clubs most often come back to test.
The dugout22 Jan 2029
“I pick players who do the work. All of it.” No name was spoken; every camera still turned to Franklin Tebo Uchenna, and the manager let it.
Market22 Jan 2029
The academy exists for exactly this morning. Branislav Matic has come through every age group the club runs and has now been handed a senior number, and the people who coached him at twelve will be the proudest in the building.
From our football correspondent
Crisis
Squad1 Jan 2029
Some afternoons a goalkeeper is the whole of the defence. 11 saves, several of them the kind nobody expects to see made, and ten outfield players who owe him a drink.
Match1 Jan 2029
Every point is an argument now for Novi Pazar
Position 14 and 21 points, and the table gets read bottom-up in this part of town. The calendar has stopped being a schedule and started being a countdown.
Squad1 Jan 2029
Driton Camaj is in the form of his life
A season average of 7.32 with 21 goals behind it. Opponents have started planning around him, which is the sincerest compliment football pays.
Market1 Jan 2029
“I have nothing bad to say about this place. I just need to be somewhere else.” It is in writing now, which changes what Novi Pazar can pretend not to have heard.
Squad1 Jan 2029
Driton Camaj was at the centre of it, and by the time it was pulled apart there were three or four others involved. Training grounds are small places and long seasons make them smaller.
Squad1 Jan 2029
Words at Novi Pazar training over how hard people work
Somebody said out loud what several people had been thinking. Luka Bijelović is at the centre of it, and the squad will now find out whether the standard rises or the pair of them simply stop speaking.
Match30 Dec 2028
1‑2 to Partizan, and no complaints worth printing. The performance asked for nothing more than it got.
Market1 Jan 2029
Marko Kolaković is free to find somewhere else
“I was told straight, and I would rather have it straight.” The manager at Novi Pazar has been clear about where Marko Kolaković stands, which is more than many ever get.
The dugout1 Jan 2029
“I pick players who do the work. All of it.” No name was spoken; every camera still turned to Maksim Kličković, and the manager let it.
From our football correspondent
Crisis
Market26 Jun 2028
Fee agreed, wages agreed, and Radnik Surdulica waiting with a shirt. Nobody at Novi Pazar is pretending otherwise, and the supporters have stopped asking whether and started asking when.
Transfer targets26 Jun 2028
Everything agreed with Radnicki Nis, everything agreed with the player; a doctor is the only person left to persuade. The photograph is a day or two away.
Squad26 Jun 2028
Driton Camaj and a teammate went at it, and not about football. Training grounds are small places and a long season makes them smaller.
Squad26 Jun 2028
Words at Novi Pazar training over how hard people work
Somebody said out loud what several people had been thinking. Luka Bijelović is at the centre of it, and the squad will now find out whether the standard rises or the pair of them simply stop speaking.
Transfer targets26 Jun 2028
The approach was made and the answer came back in a sentence. There is no number on the table because there was no number that would have been enough.
Transfer targets26 Jun 2028
Mladost Lucani have been asked whether they would lend him. Loans are agreed quickly or not at all, and this one will be one or the other by the weekend.
Market26 Jun 2028
“We keep meeting, and we keep leaving the room with the same numbers we walked in with.” Another round of talks at Novi Pazar, another week without a signature from Skima Togbe.
The dugout26 Jun 2028
“I would rather say it to his face than read about it.” The meeting was requested by the player, which tells you most of what you need to know.
Market26 Jun 2028
Miloje Preković is free to find somewhere else
“I was told straight, and I would rather have it straight.” The manager at Novi Pazar has been clear about where Miloje Preković stands, which is more than many ever get.
From our football correspondent
Crisis
Squad12 Jun 2028
A fracture rules Aleksa Kuljanin out for 17 days
Bones knit. That is the one merciful thing about this injury and the reason Novi Pazar will talk about it more openly than they would about a knee. He will be back, and roughly when they say.
Squad12 Jun 2028
Andrej Popović and a teammate said things this week that will take longer than a week to unsay. It was not about football, and both of them play on Saturday.
Transfer targets12 Jun 2028
Novi Pazar asked and Radnicki Nis said no without discussing a figure. It is the least ambiguous answer in football and the one clubs most often come back to test.
Squad12 Jun 2028
“Some decisions take a long time. This one took ten minutes, and most of that was finding a pen.” Adedapo Adejare and Novi Pazar agree another 4 years.
Squad12 Jun 2028
“I have tried. I have really tried, and every day I wake up in the wrong place.” Nobody at Novi Pazar can coach that out of a man, and nobody there is pretending to.
Transfer targets12 Jun 2028
A loan move for Shina Ayodele is in the works
Novi Pazar have made the call to LOSC Lille. No fee, a share of the wages, and a spare shirt in the position where the squad has been thinnest all season.
Transfer targets12 Jun 2028
A loan move for Ionut Keseru is in the works
Novi Pazar have made the call to Pandurii. No fee, a share of the wages, and a spare shirt in the position where the squad has been thinnest all season.
The dugout12 Jun 2028
Veljko Mirosavić asks for a word with the manager
“I would rather say it to his face than read about it.” The meeting was requested by the player, which tells you most of what you need to know.
The dugout12 Jun 2028
Miloje Preković is still being punished for one mistake
Nobody will confirm it and the team sheets confirm it every week. One error has bought him a spell as second choice that is already longer than the error deserved.
From our football correspondent
Crisis
Boardroom5 Jun 2028
The board have said in public what they had been saying in private. Results between now and the next meeting decide it, and everybody in the building knows the arithmetic.
Squad5 Jun 2028
24 days out for Aleksa Kuljanin after a fracture
A bone, which is the one injury with a calendar attached. Novi Pazar will name a return date and, unusually for this business, will probably be right about it.
Boardroom5 Jun 2028
The Novi Pazar board call everybody in
Nothing has been announced and everybody understands what it means. A board that summons the whole football department on a Tuesday morning is a board that has stopped believing the problem will fix itself.
Squad5 Jun 2028
Driton Camaj in a row with a teammate
It was not about football and everybody who saw it knows that. Two men who have to play together on Saturday said things at Novi Pazar this week that will take longer than a week to unsay.
Squad5 Jun 2028
Aleksa Čolović arrives at the club he grew up with
Every footballer has an answer to the question about his boyhood club, and most of them never get to act on it. Aleksa Čolović has, at Novi Pazar, and the first month will show what that does to a man.
Squad5 Jun 2028
Words at Novi Pazar training over how hard people work
Somebody said out loud what several people had been thinking. Luka Bijelović is at the centre of it, and the squad will now find out whether the standard rises or the pair of them simply stop speaking.
Boardroom5 Jun 2028
Nothing happens for months and then he simply arrives, at no cost, having signed a pre-contract while still turning out for somebody else. It is the least dramatic way to sign a footballer and frequently the shrewdest.
The dugout5 Jun 2028
Veljko Mirosavić is still being punished for one mistake
Nobody will confirm it and the team sheets confirm it every week. One error has bought him a spell as second choice that is already longer than the error deserved.
Transfer targets5 Jun 2028
Radnicki Nis have been asked whether they would lend him. Loans are agreed quickly or not at all, and this one will be one or the other by the weekend.