MHSC – Brest: “I never give up on challenges and I take responsibility,” assures Nikola Maksimovic

Nikola Maksimovic prêt à devenir un leader dans le vestiaire montpelliérain. MAXPPP – EMMANUEL LELAIDIER

La dernière recrue poursuit la tradition de Montpellier de faire venir des défenseurs serbes.

It's a new wink from history but in this year when Montpellier Hérault celebrates its 50th anniversary, it's hard not to see it as a sign. Especially when the club is in difficulty and it turns to its elders to save its head in Ligue 1. A return to its cardinal values ​​which are surpassing oneself, grinta, combativeness, the fact of not giving up. What better than a Serbian defender to embody this?

Especially when in the history of La Paillade, two of them have marked their time at the club, Nenad Stojkovic and Nenad Dzodic. The latter has 273 appearances in the orange and blue colours and he was there, Friday, discreetly for the press conference of his compatriot Nikola Maksimovic. He will help him to integrate more easily into life in Montpellier, even if at 32 years old and when you measure 1.93 m and weigh 89 kg, and you have 25 selections in the national team, you do not need a chaperone.

A decent performance in Le Havre

As you do not need a lot of joint training with your new team and despite uncertain physical preparation to go see your coach and tell him that you are ready to play. Right from the start, this establishes a man, his character and his desire to assert himself after only three days in a new club. For an honest performance at Le Havre (1-0) despite the lack of automatisms with his teammates.

“My first impression was that I wasn't at the level I should be. But it's been four months since I trained with a team”, the central defender almost apologized, but he nevertheless showed his sense of positioning and anticipation despite a certain slowness.
“To protect him, I made a five-man system to prevent him from moving to the sides. He brought serenity. He's not at the top of his game, but he's the player we needed. He held up physically. Even when we played with four at the end of the match, I didn't find him awkward”, analyzed his coach, Jean-Louis Gasset after the match.

It can only get better for the ex-defender of Torino, Napoli and Genoa. “I think it's going well improve when we get to know each other even better. I feel like when I talk to the players and the coach, we can already see changes in the team and we're moving forward.”

The international break to perfect your physical condition

A collective and individual improvement that Nikola Maksimovic hopes will be as quick as possible, aiming for the international break after the Brest match on Sunday. “This break from the championship will help me to integrate and be ready as soon as possible.”

We therefore feel that he is ready to play a leadership role and not hide even when it's complicated. Besides, the club's last place in Ligue 1 didn't put him off when he signed. “It's true that we are in a very difficult situation but I never give up on challenges and I assume my responsibilities as an experienced player”, assures Nikola Maksimovic.

With such a mentality and in case of maintenance, he could join in history his illustrious predecessors.