Written by: Khalis Rifhan

Despite experiencing a 5-0 reverse against Italian giants Juventus at the newly built National Stadium, Warriors Football Club player Miroslav Pejic relished the moment playing alongside Singapore’s national players.

The 28-year-old started the match alongside his Warriors teammates Nicholas Velez and national captain Shahril Ishak in attack. The trio displayed exceptional understanding despite playing together for the first time.

“It was a good experience to play with the national team and under coach Bernd Stange. He is a very positive coach. It is a big honour to share the pitch with Juventus, a big club in Europe,” said Pejic after the match.

“I took from the best player, Andrea Pirlo. I told him that he is the best player ever and he gave me his jersey. Thank you Pirlo and I am very happy now!”

While there are a section of fans that have criticised and mocked Stange’s charges for their loss, Pejic refused to let it bother him and believes that such high level test is the way forward for Singapore’s football.

“It was not an easy match but you must understand that Juventus is of a different level. They have big names and World Cup players,” explained the Croatian.

“They are very serious in this friendly match and it is good for local footballers to play matches like this.

“We also played our best especially in the first half and had several opportunities on goal. You see in the first half, they only managed to score from the freekick and a penalty,” added Pejic.