7m - Milos Bozovic: “Our goal is to reach SEHA – Gazprom League grand finale“

Milos Bozovic

Milos Bozovic – Montenegrin national team player, 25-year-old born in Budva reinforced PPD Zagreb in the second part of the season. Bozovic had his debut against Flensburg in a match in which he was the most efficient back player of his team despite of the fact his outing was far from ideal. However, it is clearly visible PPD Zagreb managed to sign a quality player and that back-court bomber will be a reinforcement for the ‘Lions’ in every aspect of the game.

He started in Budvanska rivijera, then spent two seasons in Gorenje Velenje and four in Hungarian Tatabanya prior to arriving to Croatian capital. Standing at 200 centimeters, Bozovic is capable of playing in the middle of any defensive scheme and is a dangerous left back able to either cut through the defense or shoot it from outside. He was also a key player in his national team’s first ever win on the European championship against Serbia.

Are you getting used to being a part of PPD Zagreb? 
I am still getting used to everything and that is, in my opinion, the reason for some ups and downs. However, I don’t think it is going to last a lot longer. Everything takes time, nothing really happens overnight.

Zagreb have really had a lot of ups and downs throughout the season?
From what I’ve seen so far I can say that on a few occasions we’ve defeated ourselves out there on the court. Sometimes we simply want too much and that is not something unusual for a young team. However, I am aware expectations are a lot higher. My expectations are a lot higher too and that’s why I’m here.

How do you like working with Veselin Vujovic?
I’ve met him in some handball camps back when I was a kid. I remember being really excited when he would come to say hi to us kids. He is one of the greats of our sport, always trying to bring the best out of everyone and players have to find a way to use his energy as a fuel although it is not always easy. I think I am progressing as a player with him with every training session.

How come you have decided to come to Zagreb in the middle of the season?
Tatabanya didn’t feel right any more despite of the fact I’ve had six more months on my contract with them. Zagreb were trying to sign me earlier and I refused but when I saw that Tatabanya started dealing with some financial problems and that we’ve lost ambition to fight with Szeged or Veszprem, I’ve decided it would be better for me to come here and get used to everything in these six months so that we can start doing the real work from the beginning of the next season.

You are from Budva – how come you didn’t decide to go for tourism or water polo?
My father was a handball player, we’ve had that spirit in our home for the last 35 years and I just kept it alive. Montenegrin national team player Cavor is also from Budva, we have a national championship trophy in our trophy room and if the city decided to help a little things could be even better…

Montenegro showcased potential on recently ended European championship.
I feel like we weren’t in the right state of mind. I believe if our main goal was to reach the second round we might have pulled that off as well. You have to strive for your goals in order to break your limits and when you, on the other side, achieve what you came for – and for us that was that one win, you kind of stop. I hope we’ll figure things out by WCh, have a better understanding of what we’re capable of because I don’t feel like we’ve had that this time.

Are you alone here in Zagreb?
Actually my fiancée is here with me and she is pregnant. If everything goes right I’ll become a father in July.

What do you expect from Zagreb until the end of the season?
I feel like, despite of the fact we’ve failed to get through to the knock-out stage, we’ve grown as a team in the Champions League. SEHA League grand finale is our big wish but Vardar and Veszprem are here as well so we can’t really say we’ll take the title. And of course to win both trophies in Croatia. I really believe we’re not even aware of how good we can be. I am definitely an optimist!