In one of the most difficult moments of Serbian football in recent years, Serbian national team experienced a shocking defeat against Albania on Tuesday evening - 0:1 in Leskovac - as part of the qualification for the 2026 World Cup. The scorer of the only goal was Ray Manaj, who in the 45th + 1st minute took advantage of the confusion in the home defense and nailed a volley into the opponent's net.
At the end of the match, the coach Dragan Stojković "Pixie" offered his resignation and practically admitted that his tenure on the bench of the national team is going down in history.
Resignation that hung in the air
Just a month ago, the coach was under fire: after the debacle against England (0:5), and then the defeat at home, there were already rumors that his mandate had come to an end.
Last night, those rumors came true, Stojković contacted the head of the Football Association of Serbia by phone immediately after the end of the match and "offered his resignation".
At the press conference, he frankly said:
"The result is really bad, I didn't expect this... My fault and responsibility. I'm the one you should criticize... The responsibility is mine, no matter where they played."
He also announced that he will not travel with the team to Andorra, where the next qualification match is, and that his place will probably be temporarily taken by first assistant Gorak Đorović.
Reactions after the match
Former soccer player Miroslav Vjetrović said after Serbia's defeat by Albania in the World Cup qualifiers that the "Eagles" game in Leskovac was shameful and thoughtless, without style and without meaning.
"At times they seemed to me like a cosmonaut when he gets out of a spaceship and asks to come back. The players were completely lost. The body language and facial expressions said that we had no strength and energy. And the atmosphere in the stadium was like a club friendly match. Something completely unexpected," pointed out Vjetrović.
He emphasized that the party of the Serbian national team is a shame for the coach Dragan Stojković Pixi.
"No reaction from the bench, no desire, no change. We finished the game with five debutants. I don't know if he was forced. Some moves already hinted that this was not going in the right direction. In Latvia we had a post, in Albania a penalty, England... It didn't go in the right direction. You could feel that energy that doesn't exist," Vjetrović said.
The defeat in Leskovac practically sealed the fate of the selectors, but also opened many questions for the future of Serbian football.
Will the new selector, whoever it is, succeed in restoring trust, building continuity and abandoning the rhetoric of politically motivated campaigns?
Radonjić: "You were never a hero"
Red Star football player and former Serbian national team player, Nemanja Radonjić, criticized Dragan Stojković Pixi after the defeat of our national team against Albania in Leskovac.
Radonjić posted a photo on his Instagram story in a Serbian jersey with the comment:
"You were never a hero, I forgive you for that, because traitors only love themselves" are the lyrics of the song that Radonjić apparently addressed to coach Stojković.
Mitrović: A heavy defeat, it hurts a lot
The captain of the Serbian national team, Aleksandar Mitrović, says that the defeat against Albania is the most difficult moment in his career.
"This is the most difficult moment in the national team career. A difficult moment, difficult days for Serbian football. The match is wild, hard, not at all nice to watch, difficult to play, without any chances. We conceded a goal from stoppage time. A heavy defeat, it hurts a lot. The most difficult period in my 13 years in the national team. We apologize to the nation, the people for not being able to achieve a good result. We did our best, that's the day, the ball didn't want to go into the goal. We couldn't create chances, a tense atmosphere, we failed to score that goal as a team. We did not create anything for the future, for the young players who are part of the national team."
