Record deal takes Pelak east

Bosnia-Herzegovnian Under-21 international Albin Pelak has left FK Sarajevo for Japanese side Cerezo Osaka for the largest fee ever paid for a Bosnian player.

Two-year deal
Cerezo have paid €1m for Pelak, who has signed a two-year contract with the J-League club. The 22-year-old is considered one of the rising stars of Bosnian football and his transfer has divided opinion in his home country where some observers argue he should be continuing his development in Europe.

Senior call-ups
Pelak has been a key player in the Bosnian U21 team who have made an unbeaten start to their UEFA EURO 2004™ qualifying programme, defeating Romania and drawing with Norway. He was called into the senior squad for matches against Yugoslavia and Romania - remaining on the bench both times - but it remains to be seen how moving to Japan will affect his international prospects.

'I will not stagnate'
"This is an offer which I could not turn down," said Pelak. "I know what I will gain and what I will lose. I think in Japan I will not stagnate. On the contrary, I hope I will eventually return to Europe in great style.

U21 worries
"The most difficult thing will be not to play for the U21 team. I cannot imagine the coach, Ibrahim Zukanovic, calling me up two months after I have arrived in Japan to play against Luxembourg and Denmark." Bosnia face Luxembourg on 28 March and Denmark on 1 April in their next Group 2 qualifiers.