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| Dragan Džajić |
In Albania, the scandal in Belgrade is still vividly remembered, when the Albanian national team played against Serbia in the Euro 2016 qualifiers, and violence surpassed all imagination.
Apparently, even in Serbia, they haven't forgotten, and this is openly stated by the president of the Football Federation of this country, Dragan Džajić, local media say.
The Serbian and Yugoslav football legend, a European champion as a player in 1968 and a star of Crvena Zvezda, leaves no doubt about his feelings when asked if drawing Albania in the Euro 2024 group would be possible.
"From all these teams in the draw, it's not easy to choose four teams you want in the group. Whatever happens, it will be difficult. In a way, it will always be difficult. I can't choose now. Germany, France, Spain are tough, but Romania is tough too. God forbid it's Albania. I don't know who else could cause us problems."
The major scandal in October 2014 at the Partizan Stadium in Belgrade created a real fear that something similar could happen in other Albanian-Serbian confrontations.
When in 2017, the draw placed Skënderbeu in a group with Partizan Belgrade in the Europa League, the concern in the Serbian capital was significant, and the security measures taken in November of that year were akin to a state of war.