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Bloemfontein Celtic have started the new PSL campaign on a high note and remain unbeaten after three fixtures, in no small part due to the influence of new coach Veselin Jelušic.
The Serbian mentor boasts one of the most accomplished coaching CVs on the continent, having earned his doctorate in football methodology and tactics at the University of Belgrade.
Jelušic was an assistant professor at the university with his doctoral dissertation featuring highly advanced coaching tactics – and his methods are bearing green and white fruit.
Celtic started the campaign with a fiercely contested 1-1 draw with Kaizer Chiefs, and pundits could not help but notice a subtle change in Siwelele’s structure.
He followed that up with a decent draw with ever-improving Golden Arrows before breaking his duck with an impressive 2-1 away win to Polokwane City.
The coach does not like his name prefaced with the title of doctor and prefers to be called Vesko – a childhood nickname meaning “the happy one”.
He is not the only happy one as Celtic supporters can look forward to a stark change in fortunes. I am tipping the team to finish in the top five after delving into the mind of a football prodigy.
For 14 years, Jelušic studied and dissected formations and tactics before a head coach stint for the Botswana national team – a tenure that saw the side move up 40 places in the Fifa world rankings.
It is refreshing to see a coach from a strong academic background testing his empirical hypotheses on the greatest stage in Africa.
“I realised in the preseason that Celtic will do well this campaign, and one game in particular stands out. In mid-July, we played Wits and, from that match, I saw huge potential,” the soft-spoken guru said.
The coach had a real baptism of fire with a first PSL fixture against Kaizer Chiefs, and the result and style of play was markedly different from anything the club has recently shown.
“I believe in playing every match looking for maximum points and the PSL showing that away teams can play positive football is heartening for me … this means we can dictate our style of play and pick up points at home and on our travels,” he says with quiet confidence.
“Every team in the PSL is capable of defeating any side and I plan on a game-to-game basis, and all our attention is on Baroka FC [whom they were to play yesterday].
“What impressed me about Baroka is the style of play they exhibited when they defeated Chippa United 3-1 [on Wednesday night], and this shows that they are a confident side who play attacking football … we are going to play a similar high-pressing, forward-momentum style,” he added.
“It is my intention that we never settle for a draw and go out for maximum points each game, and then, at the halfway stage, we will see where we are lying. But my philosophy is to concentrate on a unique type of play.”
Celtic’s next three games will create the platform for their great start, and Baroka, Chippa and Bidvest Wits can expect a torrid time.
The doctor will be out to break a curse with back-to-back games in the Mother City when they next take on Ajax Cape Town and Cape Town City, but the coach has not been around long enough to know how poorly Celtic have performed there in the past, and will bring a heartening tactical perspective.
Bloemfontein used to be a fortress for visiting teams, and picking up points in the City of Roses was like finding moonshine in a church.
“Home advantage is great, but it is not certain and that is why I treat each game on its merits.”
This philosophy is in stark contrast to the sometimes staid approach of local coaches, who will often say an away draw was a good result.
The Serbian is a scientist and knows that many variables make up the parts of the sum, and his studious approach will see Celtic surprising many “big” teams – and a title push is not outside the realm of possibility.
Augousti is the chief international sports writer at betting site EaziBet.co.za
