The way to success …..via Denmark?

By winning Main Round Group 1 a few weeks ago, Budućnost gained a semi-final place in the EHF Champions League for the first time in nine years.

It wasn’t only the return of Montenegrin superstar Bojana Popović that made this great result possible, but also the good selection of quality players that fit together very well.

The man responsible for Budućnost’s success is coach Dragan Adžić, a diligent tactician on the sideline. Adžić, who was nominated head coach of the Montenegro Women’s national team in September 2010, knows his players very well. So far, his tactics have paid off and his team has, without any problems, marched to the semi-finals.

There, though, a very tough opponent awaits his side, the 'Norwegian national team' in the guise of Larvik HK.

Coach Adžić spoke to ehfCL.com after two test games in Austria against Hypo-NÖ, and before leaving for Denmark, where his team is gathering as guests of last year’s EHF Champions League champions Viborg HK.

ehfCL.com: Last weekend you played two games against Austrian champions Hypo-NÖ. How do those games fit in with Budućnost’s preparation for the first leg of the semi-final against Larvik?

Dragan Adžić: Actually, they didn’t fit very well, as we had to play the first game just a few hours after we landed following a delay at the Airport.

The second match was on Saturday morning, so playing two games like those just one week before the important clash against the Norwegians was not the best start to last week’s preparation.

Those games were part of our commitment to the Women’s Regional Handball League, so we had to play them.

ehfCL.com: The team will spend a week of training, and possibly a test match in Viborg, prior to the game against Larvik. Last season it was the Danish team that stopped the Norwegians, so is it part of the reason to train there and work out the best possible tactics?

Dragan Adžić: (smiling) No, that’s not the real reason for our training camp in Denmark. We decided to go there to be together as a team and prepare as a real unit.

Also, Denmark is quite close to Norway, so we will have less travelling time, which is also of great importance.

ehfCL.com: I assume you saw Győri Audi ETO’s away match against the Norwegian champions from the Main Round. Will Budućnost follow the same route?

Dragan Adžić: Partly yes. Indeed, they played better in this match. For us, it’ll be very important to prepare mentally and game-play-wise for this important game.

ehfCL.com: Why was your best goal scorer (second in this year’s EHF CL campaign) Katarina Bulatović not with you to play the games against Hypo-NÖ?

Dragan Adžić: She is suspended and won’t play the semi-final games.

ehfCL.com: How do you see your opponents Larvik? What could become the key elements for a victory? Do you have any dream result?

Dragan Adžić: They are a fantastic team with top players on every position.

Three things will be of great importance: firstly to mark their line player Heidi Løke, secondly to stop their strongest weapon, the fast breaks. For this we will have to be very organized and return to our defending positions as fast as possible.

The third and most important thing will be to have our heads optimally prepared for this game.

No dream result exists for me, the outcome will first be known after two games. The main importance is to play a good match with our best possible game play.

Will Budućnost’s Scandinavian preparation pay off? The first semi-final of this season between the Montenegrin champions and the Norwegians will be broadcast as a free-of-charge live web stream on ehfTV.com.

EHF Women’s Champions League, semi-finals, First leg
Saturday 9 April 2011, 17:15 hrs (local time)
Larvik HK (NOR) vs. Budućnost Podgorica (MNE)

ehfTV.com is the official Internet TV platform of the European Handball Federation and offers free live streaming as well as a video on demand service.