“As a coach of the senior national team (…) he won the first promotion in 12 years Olympic Games and thus achieved his intended goal. After the tournament in Paris and the expiration of his contract, he expressed his desire to say goodbye to the national team, believing that after the Olympic cycle, someone with new ideas and new energy should work as the first coach of the national team,” the Serbian federation, which parted ways with Igor Kolakovic, reported on Thursday.
Will Grbić leave the Poles for his national team? This is how he reacted to the rumors
Immediately after the announcement was made, speculations about who would be the new coach of the national team began in the media. Serbia In volleyball. The local portal meridiansport.rs quickly mentioned the name of… Nikola Grbić! “Without a doubt, there are two names that, ideally, many would like to see on the coaching bench. They are Nikola Grbic and Slobodan Kovac,” it was written.
Let us recall that the Serb has been associated with our team for two years, with which he won a silver medal at the Olympic Games in Paris a few weeks ago. In addition, under his leadership, Polish volleyball players won second place at the World Championships, gold at the European Championships, and gold and two bronze medals at the Nations League. What's more, his contract was recently extended until the end of the Olympic Games in Los Angeles in 2028.
In such a situation, is Grbić interested in a sudden change of employer? In an interview with the portal WP SportoweFakty the coach himself spoke on the subject. Fortunately, fans from Poland can sleep soundly.
– I don't know how I could become the coach of the Serbian national team if I have a contract signed with Poland until the Los Angeles Olympics. So I wouldn't be able to coach two teams. As long as I am the coach of the Poles, I won't work with the Serbs – he declared. Another candidate to take over the Serbian team is the aforementioned Kovac, who has held this position in the past. He also coached Polish teams: Jastrzębski Węgiel and Skra Bełchatów. “He (Kovac – ed.) would certainly be motivated to find himself in a familiar place again and set off on another mission” – the aforementioned source emphasizes. Currently, Slobodan Kovac remains unemployed.