Jonathan Wilson: Shades of the Santiagistas from Serbia's youngsters

Jonathan Wilson / Jonathan Wilson / 30 July 2009 / Leave a Comment

"Serbia have a defensive solidity, and in Aleksic and Ljajic, they have two players with the sort of individual brilliance that can turn a game even when things are going against them."

Serbia would love a triumph to compare to Croatia's successes over the last decade. After an impressive opening week at the UEFA U19 Championships, are Adem Ljajic and co about to give the nation something to shout about? Jonathan Wilson reports...

In 1987 an unfancied Yugoslavia side went to Chile, suddenly found their form, played brilliantly, and ended up winning the World Youth Cup (in those days for Under-20s). A little over a decade later, the core of that side - Zvonimir Boban, Robert Prosinecki, Davor Suker, Robert Jarni and Igor Stimac - were in the Croatia team that reached the semi-finals of the World Cup in France. All Yugoslavia gloried in the success of a team that became known as the Santiagistas, but as time has gone by it has come, increasingly, to be seen as a Croatian triumph.

Serbia, of course, would love a comparable success, and as a sparkling generation has emerged, it has been put under pressure to repeat the glories of 22 years ago. The Under-21 side disappointed in the European Championships in Sweden, drawing 0-0 against both Italy and Belarus before losing 3-1 to the hosts. The image of their captain, Milan Smiljanic, lashing the ball at an advertising hoarding half an hour into their final game seemed to encapsulate their frustration, which culminated in two red cards.

There are more encouraging signs from the Under-19s, though. Without setting the world on fire - certainly they are not yet dazzling as the Santiagistas did - they had the best record of any side in the group stages, and the sense is of a team gathering themselves to fulfil what has for months been seen, in Serbia at least, as their destiny.

They were probably the better side in drawing 1-1 against France in their opener, a game that, if nothing else, gave a hint of the partnership between their two most vaunted players as the attacking midfielder Adem Ljajic, now of Manchester United, laid on the equaliser for the Vojvodina forward Danijel Aleksic. Both might have played in the Under-21 side; instead both were kept fresh for this tournament.

Against Spain in their second game, Serbia again fell behind, and Ljajic again proved creator enough to drag them back into the game. First his vicious right-foot free-kick was spilled by the Spain goalkeeper David De Gea, allowing Milan Milanovic to tap in, then it was from his corner that Milanovic headed the second. And it was Ljajic who got the assist again in the third group game, taking Nemanja Milic's pass and laying it off superbly for Aleksic to score the game's only goal.

Ukraine, also unbeaten so far, stand in their way in this evening's semi-final. They have home advantage in Mariupol, but will be hampered by suspensions to two key players. Serhiy Rybalka scored the late winner against Switzerland that took Ukraine through the groups, but the yellow card he picked up immediately afterwards rules him out through suspension. The centre-forward Vitaliy Kaverin is also banned having picked up two bookings in the final 12 minutes of the first half and been sent off.

Ukraine's coach Yuriy Kalitvintsev has been putting a brave face on it, insisting the backing of the crowd will tell and that the players who replace Rybalka and Kaverin won't be worse than them, but he must know that he is leading a weakened side against the team who most impressed over the first week of the tournament. Serbia are [2.52] to win and Ukraine [2.58]; Serbia would look great value but for the age-old habit of Serbian teams - at national and at club level - of choking whenever the first sniff of glory enters their nostrils.

The great strength of this team, though, is that they are not, as so many Serbian or Yugoslav teams were in the past, a beautiful but delicate mechanism that can be thrown off course by one stray part.

They have a defensive solidity, and in Aleksic and Ljajic, they have two players with the sort of individual brilliance that can turn a game even when things are going against them. That perhaps explains why the under 2.5 goals price is as low as [1.56], but it wouldn't be a complete surprise were Serbia to cut loose. Certainly if they get an early lead, they are perfectly suited to annihilating a team on the break, which may make the [2.02] on over 2.5 goals attractive.

The other semi-final sees England play France. Both are [2.5] to win the tournament overall, making the [3.0] available on Serbia extremely tempting; they did, after all, finish above France in their group.