Djukić leads by example

Whatever the outcome of Saturday's meeting between Serbia and the Netherlands in the UEFA European Under-21 Championship final, no one can deny Miroslav Djukić has made a considerable success of his first position as a head coach. The former Yugoslavia international has guided his side through a qualifying round, masterminded a remarkable victory against Sweden in the play-offs and clinched first place in Group B at the finals before beating Belgium in the semi-finals to set up that Dutch date. uefa.com asked him the secret of his success.

uefa.com: What has been the basis for your team's impressive displays here?

Djukić: Unity, and collective spirit. We have given everything, both on and off the pitch. We have a group of great individual talents and by coming together as a team we have made them even stronger.

uefa.com: Do you see that your most important job as a coach – to bring the players together as a team?

Djukić: No, my most important job is to improve all of the players. I wanted to prepare them for anything at these finals, to make them better players while not taking anything away from them individually.

uefa.com: Why do Serbia – and previously Serbia and Montenegro and Yugoslavia – have such a good record at U21 level?

Djukić: U21 football is very important to us. In our country we don't have enough money to buy players so we have to develop them ourselves while the best players are bought by foreign clubs. That means that younger players get the chance to play in the first team at their clubs earlier than they might have done elsewhere, and means in turn that they're ready for international football when the chance comes.

uefa.com: What do you think this generation of players can achieve?

Djukić: We must put all our faith in these players and give them all our support. Four of them are already senior internationals and I really believe that in the next few years, if not months, all of them will be knocking on the door for the A team. We must do our very best by them, prepare them properly and help them progress as players and as people.

uefa.com: What has the reaction been to your success in Serbia?

Djukić: We've only been an independent nation for a year so our history is very short, and without doubt this is our greatest success so far. It's great motivation for the future, not just for individuals but for our nation as a whole. Football is our No1 sport and the players are a magnet for the public. This success will give great inspiration to everyone.

uefa.com: What have these finals taught you as a coach?

Djukić: The first and last lesson, both for myself and my team, is to play for the side as a collective unit, not as individuals. If you are all united, you will always give yourselves a chance. In the past that wasn't the case in our teams but it's the only way to fulfil your potential.

uefa.com: You're leaving the U21 side after the tournament, how will you look back on your time with the squad?

Djukić: I won't have too much time to think about it, because on the same day as we play in the final Partizan start pre-season training, so when I get back to Belgrade I will go straight from the plane to the training ground! But I will look back on this tournament for the rest of my life, from our point of view it's been perfect, although we don't know what it means for us yet. One day we will understand what we've done here.

This is an abridged version of an article that appears in this week's edition of the uefa.com Magazine. To read it full, click here.