Robert Prosinecki’s exhilarating blend of class, courage and technical virtuosity illuminated some of the grandest stages in football.

The midfield maestro graced three FIFA World Cup™ tournaments, represented both Real Madrid and Barcelona, and won the European Cup with Red Star Belgrade.

The former Croatia international is now imparting his wealth of knowledge and experience as coach of the Montenegro national team, a role he took on in February 2024. When asked by FIFA what continues to drive him at this stage of his career, the 54-year-old replies: “Football has given me a lot in my life, and I want to give something back. The feeling that you can teach something to the players is really nice. As someone who was able to play for the greatest clubs in the world, and be coached by the greatest coaches, it allowed me to learn a lot. I try to pass that to my players.

“It’s great when you see they believe in what you are doing and, even if you don’t get the result, that they’ve put the trust in you and your work. Of course, I love when I see my team win. That’s a beautiful feeling.”

Prosinecki savoured that emotion when Montenegro stunned Turkey in their most recent fixture, a 3-1 UEFA Nations League victory in November. That result halted a run of seven matches without a win – and provided a vital injection of confidence ahead of the start of World Cup 26 qualifying.

“We played amazingly in that game,” says Prosinecki, whose Montenegro team are 73rd on the FIFA/Coca-Cola World Ranking, 45 places below Turkey. “Turkey are a young team but with huge potential. In my opinion, they are one of the top ten teams in Europe. We fought well and that victory was a big thing for us. We needed it.”

Montenegro will kick off their bid to reach their first World Cup with home matches against Gibraltar and the Faroe Islands in March. Group L also features Czechia and the loser of the Nations League quarter-final between Croatia and France, who Prosinecki acknowledges will “definitely be favourites” to win the section.

“As a person, I have always been an optimist,” says Prosinecki, sizing up the task at hand. “I always believe big things are achievable. As people, Montenegrins are brave. They will never give up. At this moment, the biggest motivation for me is that Montenegro have not qualified for a major competition in their history. Everyone in the country dreams of the day they will do that. I am quite positive we can achieve it.”

Given Montenegro’s population of just over 600,000, qualification would represent a seismic accomplishment. Iceland is the only nation with a smaller population to have competed at the World Cup.

In Prosinecki, however, Montenegro have a coach with experience of defying the odds. He was a pivotal figure as World Cup debutants Croatia finished third at France 1998. He scored in their first-ever match at the global finals – a 3-1 win over Jamaica – and in their 2-1 third-place play-off success against the Netherlands.

“The most important thing in our team was the culture we created,” says Prosinecki, who starred at the 1990 World Cup for Yugoslavia, one year before Croatia declared independence. “We had a huge desire to perform for the national team. Croatia had become an independent country and we were all highly motivated. We had a very good generation of players, with people like [Zvonimir] Boban, [Davor] Suker, [Robert] Jarni and all the others. We gave it all we had and managed to achieve a great result. In doing that, we created a bond with the national team which has lasted to this day.

“The generation led by Luka Modric has done even better [finishing runners-up at Russia 2018 and third at Qatar 2022]. For Croatia, a country of about 3.5 million inhabitants, to be third in the world twice and second once is amazing. It can be compared with winning the World Cup with Brazil.”

Prosinecki is now out to create another slice of World Cup history with Montenegro. Taking the nation to next year’s North American extravaganza, he says, would rank with any of his myriad achievements in the game.

“Definitely. It would be the biggest thing I have done my coaching career,” explains Prosinecki, whose previous roles include spells in charge of Azerbaijan, Bosnia & Herzegovina and Red Star Belgrade. “I have had some huge victories and good performances, but taking Montenegro to the World Cup would be the peak for me so far as a coach.

“Emotionally, finishing third in the World Cup has a special place in my heart. Winning the European Cup in 1991 with Red Star and the World Youth Championship in 1987 with my generation from ex-Yugoslavia will also remain in my memory forever. Qualifying for the World Cup with Montenegro would make me especially proud and would compare with those feelings.”

Read on for more of our interview with Robert Prosinecki.

Montenegro will be favourites in your first two World Cup qualifiers against Gibraltar and the Faroe Islands. What attitude do you want to see from your team in those games?
Robert Prosinecki: We do not underestimate them, but we want to achieve good results in both matches. And when I say good results, I mean only victories. We can’t be relaxed. I believe our players will be highly focused on what they have to do. We must be at top of our game to achieve the results we want. We want to go into our next game, against Czechia in June, in a good position and with a good atmosphere.

There is a chance you could face Croatia in your group. How would it feel for you to come up against them?
It will definitely not be a regular match. It will be a game with different emotions for me. But the only think I want is to win. I am Croat, I still live in Croatia, but that doesn’t matter in this case because we are doing our job. I will be motivated in that match as well as my players.

The match will be unique and I’m sure there will be questions from the media and the general public because of the situation, but I’m used to that. We know a lot about all the teams in our group, but we know even more about Croatia. I am familiar with this generation of players because many of them started during the time I was assistant coach to Slaven Bilic in the national team [from 2006 to 2010]. I know what they’re capable of.

Luka Modric remains one of Croatia’s key men. What makes him such a special player?
To still be playing at 39 years old with Real Madrid – and not just having a role on the sidelines, he is important for the team – is amazing at this stage of his life. He has brought so much joy to all Croatian fans as well as to all Real Madrid fans. He still has incredible desire to play – and it’s not only to get more appearances. He wants to be a crucial player and that’s incredible. He’s a super talented player. He has won everything and managed to fulfil everything he could have dreamed of.

Returning to Montenegro, how important is your captain, Stevan Jovetic?
Everybody knows his qualities, and he is one of the best players in the history of Montenegro. He means a lot to us. When he is with the team, everybody is more focused and more alert. The other players perform better because they look up to him. He is a leader, and he knows what to say and when to say it. I hope he will go through this year without any injuries, and he will help us in all the World Cup qualifying matches to achieve what we want to achieve.

Across the world of football, what players do you admire today?
It is obvious everyone looks up to players like Kylian Mbappe, Vini Jr, Mohamed Salah and Erling Haaland. They are the ones deciding games. There are also players like Jude Bellingham, like Rodri, who are also making the difference, but maybe not in such an obvious way. All of those players do things differently on the pitch. That could be the way they hit the ball or the way they dribble, for example. That’s the reason we like them and why we like to watch them perform. It will be that way for as long as football exists. We will go to the stadiums to watch the players who are different.

You played under some excellent coaches during your playing career. Is there one who you learned the most from?
I had the opportunity to work with the greatest coaches back in the day, and I wouldn’t like to offend anyone by not mentioning them. But the one that stands out is Johan Cruyff when I was at Barcelona. He was great as a person, great as a coach, and obviously he was great as a player. In the ’90s, he actually invented tiki-taka football. I am so happy I had the chance to work with such a legend.

Finally, you’ve said how much it would mean to take Montenegro to the World Cup. What gives you confidence you can do it?
We have senior players who will still be here for this campaign and they are integral parts of the team. We also have some promising young players. They have to prove themselves and be on the level we all know they can be. With that mixture, I believe we can achieve results. If we are all together – the players, the fans, the association, the media – and giving our best, I think we can do it [reach the World Cup]. We have a good schedule and we are confident. Since independence [which Montenegro declared in 2006], in the World Cup qualifiers and EURO qualifiers, some small details were missing. Sometimes it was just one point, sometimes one goal, but all the time something was missing: a bit of luck. I hope this time it will be on our side.