"I am aware that as a striker, I am expected to score goals first and foremost"

Our team has strengthened its squad with the arrival of Ivan Saponjic, a Serbian striker who has also played in the Spanish La Liga. We spoke to the U20 World Cup winner, who also played for Atlético Madrid, after signing his contract.

How did Fehérvár approach you and what were the factors that made you choose our club?

This winter I was approached by Fehérvár and I thought it was the best decision for me at the moment. I think I'm in the ideal position to be successful with the team and I want to play a big part in a successful period for Vidi. My first impressions are definitely positive, everyone has been welcoming and I have already had the opportunity to meet and talk to the head coach. I've watched several of the team's autumn matches, and based on these, I think Vidi have a strong squad, and I think 7-10 days will be enough for me to settle in with my teammates. I want to prove that this contract has been a win-win situation for both parties.

There have been many Serbian players in the Hungarian league in recent years, and I'm sure you know many of them personally. Have you asked their opinion, have you talked to them?

Yes, at my first club, Partizan Beograd, I played with Danko Lazovic, who also achieved good results with Vidi, while our head coach at the time was Marko Nikolics, who later became a league champion with Fehérvár. I spoke to Lazovic, and he had nothing but positive things to say about the Hungarian championship and about Fehérvár, and he emphasised the professionalism of the work at the club. I also have friends in Újpest, Matija Ljujic and the Croatian Fran Brodic, and they also said that the league is strong and high quality.

Besides your clubs, you also achieved great success with the Serbian national youth team when you won the U20 World Championship in 2015. You played a memorable match against the Hungarian national team, how do you remember that encounter?

We played the quarter-finals against Hungary at the World Cup in New Zealand and we managed to equalise with a goal in the last minutes and then went through, Hungary were a very strong team. We had a good generation with whom we achieved that success, and we had an excellent coach, Veljko Paunovics, who has been working at a high level ever since. In the end we won the tournament, which is the most exhilarating feeling I can imagine. By the way, I played a few matches against the Hungarian junior national teams, and we always fought tough battles with them.

The most famous club of your career is Atlético Madrid, and you also played for Cádiz FC in the Spanish first division. What are some of the experiences that you have been able to bring with you from such a highly ranked league?

At Atlético, although I didn't play many games, I spent two years with them and learned a lot from the great team-mates I had the chance to train with on a daily basis. I played in my position with players like Luis Suárez, Diego Costa and Joao Félix, and our head coach was Diego Simeone. It was a very good experience for me as a young player and the players from the Balkans who were my team-mates helped me a lot. I learnt a lot about football there, about defensive and attacking tactics. But now, at 27, I feel it's time to play a lot and make the most of the experience I gained at Atlético, among others, to get the most out of myself on the pitch.

What can Vidi fans expect from you?

I will train hard every day, I want to score a lot of goals and help the team to finish as high as possible in the table. I know that as a striker, they expect me to score goals first and foremost.

Do you usually set yourself targets for the number of goals you want to score before a half or a full season?

Honestly, I don't like to talk about it so much, but obviously I want to score as many as possible. I could say big numbers, but right now my priority is to settle in as quickly as possible and agree with the coaching staff exactly what tasks I'm going to be given on the pitch.

Are there any players on the team that you knew personally from before?

Not personally, but I am familiar with Filip Holender's career, I saw many of his matches when he played for Partizan Beograd. Everyone welcomed me well, I'm sure I will have a good relationship with my teammates.

What are your first impressions of Székesfehérvár, how do you like the city?

It's my first time here, but everything is very nice, my family is here with me, my three-year-old daughter is enjoying herself. I'm also happy to be close to home, when I get the chance to travel home, it's only a couple of hours away.