Livakovic on Fenerbahçe Fans: “You Feel the Pressure Everywhere in the City”
Last season's Fenerbahçe signing, star goalkeeper Dominik Livakovic, gave an exclusive interview to Croatian media, where he discussed head coach Jose Mourinho, the pressure of winning a championship, and his rapport with teammates.
“WORKING WITH MOURINHO IS AN HONOR”
“Everything Jose Mourinho has achieved in his career is evident in every detail. He has a special relationship with the team—he’s the first to arrive and the last to leave the facilities. Experiencing his work ethic is a pleasure. It’s truly an honor to work with him.”
“YOU CAN FEEL IT EVEN IN THE CITY”
“At Dinamo Zagreb, I experienced what fan pressure means in a big club. But Fenerbahçe is a team with 30 million fans, who haven’t won a championship for a long time. Naturally, this creates pressure because this is a massive club. You can feel it every step you take in the city or wherever you go.”
“IT TOOK ME SOME TIME TO ADAPT”
“You have to come to the match and feel it yourself. Our fans know how to create a unique atmosphere. The stadium is incredibly loud. At first, it took me some time to adapt. I haven’t played a single match where the stadium wasn’t packed. It takes about 15 minutes to gather your senses and adjust in such an environment. Communicating with teammates on the field becomes challenging. Shouting to someone from a distance gets really hard.”
“DZEKO, TADIC, KOSTIC…”
“I have great communication with Džeko, Tadić, and Kostić. We grab coffee together before training in the mornings. We all live in the same neighborhood, which makes it easy to plan things like going out for dinner.”
“PART OF MY CHARACTER”
“My ability to appear calm in the most stressful moments is, I think, a part of my character that keeps me grounded.”
“MENTALLY CHALLENGING, BUT…”
“There are a lot of matches, especially at a club playing in Europe every three days, and if you’re also on the national team… It’s not just physically but mentally challenging as well, with all the traveling involved. But we’ll manage, of course.”
