Dejan Ljubicic put in a strong performance against Eintracht Braunschweig on Saturday evening. With his second goal, the midfield star of 1. FC Köln also signalled what he thought of the rumours surrounding him. But what does the gesture really mean?
It was the 61st minute of the game in Müngersdorf when Dejan Ljubicic showed in just a few seconds what makes him so valuable for 1. FC Köln: The midfielder pressed his opponent at high speed. In the fight for the ball, Ljubicic flicked the ball away and immediately started running. Tim Lemperle made a great pass from his ankle to the Austrian, who stayed cool in front of Lennart Grill and shot into the far corner.
The 4-0 was not only the final decision against an overwhelmed Braunschweig team. Ljubicic also demonstrated his individual class with his second goal of the evening. The class that should help FC to promotion. The class that recently led to rumors about him again. The class that is hardly found in the 2nd Bundesliga and that the Billy Goats would actually like to keep.
Ljubicic shoots more often than Eintracht
When the ball hit the goal, Ljubicic celebrated in front of the south curve. The Austrian briefly put his index finger to his lips – a clear gesture. But to whom was he directing it? His former advisor Volker Struth recently kicked the 26-year-old out of the agency. Ljubicic is said to have turned down an FC offer to extend his contract. Even those responsible at FC did not want to rule out a possible summer transfer when asked by GEISSBLOG.
His performance and gesture on Saturday evening were actually a sign that Ljubicic could and would stay in Cologne. And with his two goals and a flawless performance (he shot on goal seven times, one more than the entire Braunschweig team), he may have given the answer to his future. At least that is what his coach hopes.
He proves what he has inside him and how important he is for this kind of game idea
Gerhard Struber
“I didn’t need his performance to know how important Dejan is for me and for the club,” said Gerhard Struber after the game. “Of course I’m happy when he proves what he’s capable of and how important he is for this type of game idea. I’m very happy that he was able to reward himself today.” And so Struber expressed his wish that Ljubicic should stay.
Nevertheless, sports director Christian Keller avoided Sky a clear message to Ljubicic that the player must stay: “It is normal that rumours arise at the end of the transfer period. There is a lot of talk. Dejo is a very, very good player and a very important character for us. Today he rewarded himself for the high investment he made with two goals. In that respect, I am simply happy for Dejo.”
Keller on talks with Ljubicic
When asked whether Ljubicic would definitely stay, Keller did not give a clear statement. “I don’t know of anything else to date,” he simply said. And continued: “What is important is always what the player, club and agent discuss. I think that little to nothing of what was actually discussed has leaked out. In that respect, there are many nice stories, but most of them are relatively far from the truth.”
Keller, however, did not want to contribute to finding the truth. He left the Austrian’s future open. At least: If the midfielder continues to deal with the fuss surrounding him as well as he did on Saturday evening, FC would have nothing against all the rumors being dispelled in the end and Ljubicic proving again in a week’s time at Schalke how important he is for the Billy Goats.
