Ognjen "Ogi" Zaric is only 35, a father of three and head coach at FC Winterthur. The former assistant to Patrick Rahmen talks to blue Sport about courage, his new job and his goals for the season.
No time? blue Sport summarizes for you
- Last season, Ognjen Zaric was still Patrick Rahmen's assistant at FC Winterthur. Following his departure to YB, the 35-year-old has now taken over as manager.
- "It also took courage, but what outweighs that is the great anticipation of my work," says Zaric to blue Sport and reveals that there will still be a lot of Rahmen in the new FC Winterthur.
- "I was part of the coaching team, Rahem and I often exchanged ideas. We are certainly very similar in terms of content. That's why he still has a lot of ideas for the game," says Zaric.
He knows that it is not a matter of course that he was given the trust, says Ognjen Zaric and says: "It also took courage, but what outweighs that is the great anticipation of my work."
At 35, Zaric, the new Winterthur coach, is the youngest coach in the Super League. Last season, the Austrian was still assistant coach to Patrick Rahmen at Winterthur. After Rahmen's departure to champions YB, he takes over his legacy. He has shoe number 43, says Zaric when blue Sport asks him about Rahmen's big shoes to fill. "I'm aware that his footprints are big. But the way it's gone now is perfect. Because it was an extra step for him and also a great opportunity for me," says Zaric, who was already Rahmen's assistant when he was still coach at FC Basel.
"It's logical that there's still a lot of potential in Winterthur"
Zaric says: "He was a coach who influenced me and helped me a lot. Today he is a friend of mine." It is therefore only logical that there is still a lot of Rahmen in the current FC Winterthur, says the father of three: "I was part of the coaching team, Paddy and I often exchanged ideas. We are certainly very similar in terms of content. That's why a lot of the ideas for the game still come from him, and we're now bringing in some additional content. That's the next step in the development of the team and then, of course, there's another part where I say that's what I stand for."
Zaric does not want to reveal what this will be. He hopes that it will be visible in the games over the next few weeks. Last season, he led the outsiders into the Championship Group alongside Rahmen. However, Zaric says it would be presumptuous to set a place in the top six as a goal for the season. "In terms of budget, we are clearly starting from 12th place - and then we have to overtake two teams over the course of the season and stay in the league. The primary goal for the season is to stay in the league. That's the reality."
Ltaief and Ganntenbein hard to replace
The departures of Ltaief and Gantenbein weigh heavily, and loan goalkeeper Keller is also back at YB. The major departures have so far been compensated for with young prospects. "Of course we try to go into every game with the intention of winning it. But the reality for us is: develop players and stay in the league."
The Championship last season showed that the Super League is not a sure-fire success for Winterthur. After surprising everyone the season before, they lost all five games. "The truth lies in between," says Zaric.
