Torino's Young Regista: Saša Lukić

My love story with Saša Lukić began as long as two years ago, precisely on August 22, 2015. I was spending a couple days in the middle of Serbia, in the small town of Čačak, precisely – do not bother asking why. And as luck would have it, the local team Borac Čačak, which plays in the Sbrije Superliga, was facing none other than giants Partizan Belgrade. It was an opportunity I was not going to miss.

Without neglecting the club’s much more complex history and culture, which I could write about endlessly, Partizan is famous internationally for two main features: extremely passionate fans and the reputation of being a Balkan talent factory, much like Dinamo Zagreb in Croatia, or, to some extent, their Serbian compatriots and rivals, Red Star Belgrade. With this in mind, I enthusiastically ventured into Borac’s 5000-strong stadium, ready to witness some real Serbian support, and to scout for some talent.

Both factors met, if not exceeded, my expectations: the Partizan Ultras were outstanding, but we can talk about them some other time, and with regards to Partizan’s young talents, there were many on show that evening. Accompanied by some real Serbian aficionados, I was lucky enough to receive a heads up about the most interesting youngsters on display. The big guy up front was Ivan Šaponjić, spearhead of the Serbian U-20 World Cup victory that summer and later bought by Benfica. That other striker, by Ivan’s side, was Andrija Zivković, who would also eventually be swiped up by Benfica. And in the middle, in partnership with the experienced Stefan Babović, was a kid with long, tidy hair and somatic features: ‘that’s Saša Lukić, in the center, keep an eye on him’ – and so I did.

Throughout the whole game, which culminated with a convincing 3-1 victory for the Crno-Beli, I did in fact keep a close eye on all the Partizani talents. Though not the most noticeable player at a first glance, Lukić was able to showcase his numerous qualities. Slightly obscured by the more affirmed Babović, who was often picked as the preferred passing option in the middle, Lukić did not feature in the playmaker role, but rather as a mezzala, on Babovic’s side and without an excessively rigid collocation on the pitch. In this position, Lukic shone for his mobility and for his rapidity, physical as much as mental. He acted both as a tidy organizer, by often making the right passing choice when under pressure, and as an attacking threat, by moving into open space and continuously orbiting around Borac’s 18-yard box.