Good feelings. Kindness. Love, memories and nostalgia, already. Djordje Mihailovic’s very last press conference as a member of CF Montreal was imbued with all these themes on Tuesday.
Posted yesterday at 9:33 p.m.
Sometimes there are nasty divorces in the sports world. The one between the American star and the Bleu-et-noir generates the opposite impression.
“My two years here have passed so quickly,” said an emotional Mihailovic at Center Nutrilait, during the CFM review.
The creative midfielder, who moved to AZ Alkmaar in the Netherlands in August, had just been asked about his sobbing after the final whistle last Sunday.
“I thought about when I decided to come to Montreal, he explains, his throat knotted. With all the resulting uncertainties. Not just to join another MLS team, but also to change countries, where the language and culture are different.
“And despite everything, everything came so naturally when I arrived. I felt so comfortable. In training, during games. Every day. So when the official whistled, it all came out. It was finished. My journey here. I was sad. »
He claims to feel “happy” two days later. “I don’t regret anything,” said the American. And especially not for having “decided to come here instead of the other teams to which [il pensait] “.
Ready for Europe
Mihailovic believes that his time in the Quebec metropolis will allow him to adapt more easily to the other side of the Atlantic. “Montreal is almost a European city,” he believes.
He smiles.
“I was driving on the highway shortly after arriving here. I was driving at 100 mph, instead of 100 km/h! It’s those little things. So I think the transition there will be easy for me. »
Speaking of driving: He’ll be driving to Chicago, his hometown, on Wednesday. Then he will “probably” go to train with his new team next week.
What will he keep from Montreal before he leaves?
It is cold ! Colder than I thought. I’m from Chicago, and it’s very cold in Chicago.
Djordje Mihailovic
It’s a real chapter that ends for Mihailovic. He played his first game as a starter in MLS at Stade Saputo on August 16, 2017 (a 3-0 loss for his Fire). Then his last Sunday.
“I came away from that game at Stade Saputo thinking that the fans here had a real passion for their club. And when I arrived in Montreal, I felt it. Especially in the last two months. You could feel the energy of the Montrealers. »
“Like a family”
Yes, Mihailovic was happy at CFM. A feeling shared by the club.
“Djordje’s emotion sums up what we promise as a project”, assures sports director Olivier Renard.
“If people decide to leave us for X or Y, the important thing is that we meet again later, and we know that we had good years together. »
PHOTO MARTIN CHAMBERLAND, THE PRESS
Kamal Miller and Djordje Mihailovic
With the American, it is undoubtedly mission accomplished.
“I never developed a relationship with a team like the one I had here,” said Mihailovic. Credit goes to the way the club is run. We are like a family, and this feeling translates into success on the pitch. »
According to him, the second position in the Eastern Conference is obviously “the result of what we have done on the ground”. “But it’s also thanks to what happens off the pitch with the players. »
And now that he’s jumping ship for the biggest challenge of his young career, the 23-year-old midfielder wants CF Montreal to “aim for more than just making the playoffs.”
“He should aspire to become champion. This year, we could have been. I believe it with certainty. »