The captain of North Macedonia, Goran Pandev confirmed that Monday's match against the Netherlands will be the last with his national team And, about to turn 38 years old, he hinted that he will also abandon professional football.
“The contract with Genoa has ended (…). I do not plan to play as a professional in the future. In the national team it is 100% safe. This is the peak of my career. My dream of playing a great game came true. tournament”he said at the press conference prior to the game against the Netherlands on the last day of Group C of the Eurocup, the first for the Balkan team.
After that historic classification, possible thanks to a goal from Pandev against Georgia in the play-off, already in the final phase Macedonia lost 3-1 against Austria and 2-1 against Ukraine, thus reaching the last of the matches eliminated but satisfied, and with the only pressure to get a draw or a victory that represents the first point for your country in a great soccer tournament.
Pandev scored the goal of his team against Austria, and at 37 years and 322 days he was among the five oldest footballers to see a goal in a European Championship., surpassed only by the Austrian Ivica Vastic and ahead of the Hungarian Zoltan Gera, the Northern Irishman Gareth McAuley and the Ukrainian Andriy Shevchenko.
A standard bearer of his team and a living legend in his country, the left-handed dribbler from Strumica, who has accumulated 121 international appearances and will turn 38 next July, has spent almost his entire career as a footballer in Italy.
He went through teams like Rome, the Inter de Milan or the Naples, although he was also a season in the Galatasaray Turkish, and his record highlights a Champions League with Inter in 2009/2010, the same year he was proclaimed champion of Italy.
Pandev, who was born Yugoslav, assumed Macedonian nationality in 1991 and also has Italian since 2019, acknowledged that his farewell match “will be emotional”, but celebrated being able to get off at a historic moment for football in his country.
“I am happy to say goodbye to the national team in a competition like this, against the Netherlands at the Johan Cruyff Arena in Amsterdam. and I hope we make all the fans happy, “said the player.
“It is the good moment to say goodbye and wish this generation to qualify for the World Cup. They can bring us many joys. They are very good players who play in great teams,” he added.
Heading into the game against the Netherlands team, with everything decided in qualifying, Pandev was optimistic about North Macedonia's chances.
“I think we can surprise them. They have a very strong national team, it will be very difficult.. But if we play as we know, I think we can surprise them, “added the footballer.
“After the game I will feel a little strange because I will not know what will happen to my career in the future,” he added Pandev, who was not blunt in ensuring that he will retire but let it be seen, explaining that he does not have a club, that he is going to turn 38 and that right now he has no plans to continue as a professional.
For his part, the coach of North Macedonia, Igor Angelovski, praised his star player, who was doubtful for the match due to discomfort but will finally be in the starting lineup against the Netherlands.
“I am very happy to have worked with this captain and with this human being,” said Angelovski, who avoided giving details about his continuity on the Macedonian bench.
“Tomorrow we will play to the maximum and I do not want to talk about the future,” he concluded.