Udinese’s new look under manager Kosta Runjaic

People do not appreciate Kosta Runjaić. He does not grant interviews in Italian, save for the occasional remark; he does not give journalists the time of day; in fact, he does everything he can to irritate them. And this, in a manner that is only theoretically indirect, ends up drawing criticism that goes far beyond technical and tactical considerations. In the summer of his arrival in Italy, greeted by the derision usually reserved for a manager of obscure pedigree and no longer in the first flush of youth, he was sold Samardzic, the stalwart Walace and Nehuen Perez; a year later it was the turn of Bijol, Thauvin and Lucca; this summer, so far, the tally stands at the departures of Kristensen and Atta, and who knows what will happen as the transfer window draws to a close.

And Runjaić? It all makes perfect sense. He gets back to work, welcomes the few new faces, tries to polish up the old ones, and carve out a role for them – a role that might be slightly different from the previous year. We would not be particularly surprised if this year it were to be 2008 Palma or 2006 Miller’s turn, nor if Ekkelenkamp were to find himself playing on a permanent basis a few metres closer to Keinan Davis, who scored in double figures last year in just 26 matches. And yet, say the aesthetes, Udinese’s style of play isn’t particularly eye-catching. One might be tempted to reply that this isn’t really a problem, provided the team remains safely clear of the relegation zone, as has been the case over the last two seasons. There are those who have long been desperately trying to get him to raise the bar, at least in words: the fans want European football and are asking him for it because they have come to appreciate him – a man so Central European in his demeanour as well as in his passport, born in Austria to Croatian parents yet a German national. The Friulians appreciate Runjaić because they see themselves reflected in his manner – reserved and hard-working. Because he doesn’t shout, he doesn’t make a fuss, he never complains: if something goes wrong, he rolls up his sleeves and starts again. If the team isn’t performing well for a few weeks, he switches to a back four, then reverts to a back three; he builds and dismantles his system as if he were working with versatile toy building blocks: you can use them to build a house, a block of flats or a car, yet the pieces all look alike – it’s up to you to decide what they’ll become.

In the end, the greatest compliment had to come from Cesc Fàbregas, who for a year has been banging his head against the Udinese wall without finding the solution to the puzzle: in January he only managed to score from a penalty, followed by two consecutive draws. “Udinese are a side you don’t come up against every week; they’ve taught me once again that when you make a technical or tactical error, they punish you straight away: they’re physical; the way they press and move quickly is Premier League standard,” said the Spanish manager, who rarely holds back when it comes to taking a dig at a colleague but also knows how to pay tribute to those who cause him serious difficulties. And yet Davis was missing up front and the gap left by Gueye is huge; there was the odd pairing of Abanwah and Palma in defence; Zaniolo wasn’t at his best and now he’ll be out for a month or so. Nobody noticed, because Runjaić is so used to losing players that he can replace them in the blink of an eye, managing to make everyone believe that Udinese have remained exactly the same for the past three years. That’s not the case, and you only need to look at the line-ups to realise it, but for someone used to staying out of the limelight, it’s hardly newsworthy. So let’s talk about others, then. Kosta Runjaić is perhaps a case for those who love a good puzzle.