West Ham United hero Igor Stimac is excited seeing his old club face Dinamo Zagreb in the Europa League on Thursday.
Stimac is greatly looking forward to watching his old club in action on home turf, 22 years after representing West Ham in a UEFA Cup first-round tie at Osijek in August 1999.
“Even when I was with West Ham we had a trip to Croatia, to Osijek [in the UEFA Cup first round in 1999], but it was kind of a different trip back then!" he told whufc.com.
“Dinamo Zagreb is one of the best academies in the world, the biggest producer of professional footballers definitely, and one of the best sides in the market of selling young players and their factory of players is unbelievable.
“West Ham will have some problems, definitely, and they need to come out at Dinamo Zagreb's stadium with authority, like they play in the Premier League – there is no difference to those games – and be patient, obviously.
“This Dinamo Zagreb side is not the same side which played last year. Every season is the same story in Croatia – you need to sell your best players to survive, to get the money into the club, then you need to make new signings and make the new team.
“They have five or six new players, but they still doing well. They are by far the best side in Croatia and they are also looking forward to this game."
Need a VPN? Or seeking to switch? Then support Tribal Football by clicking here to sign up with our official partners NordVPN. Not only will you receive the best VPN experience, but also great discounts by signing up via Tribal Football. Thanks for your support!