IT’S WILL DEFINITELY be an away day to remember.
It doesn’t matter that Bosnia-Herzegovina also have a 37,500-seater stadium that they use in Sarajevo – their fortress is 70 kilometres away from the capital in Zenica.
Bosnia’s first competitive match was against Albania in 1996, and it was 10 years, and 15 matches, before they lost at the Bilino Polje Stadium – a Euro 2008 qualifier against Hungary.
Due to UEFA regulations the capacity for Friday night’s playoff clash with Ireland is just 11,500, 4,000 people less than local club NK Celik are usually permitted.
Irish fans will start their evening in style with a police escort from Sarajevo to the nation’s fourth biggest city. And the night should build from there.
An intense atmosphere is promised in Central Europe. Fans will be right amongst the action as the Bilino Polje is one of few football grounds in the country without an athletics track around the perimeter.
Bosnian fans certainly aren’t shrinking violets and clearly have a sense of humour. Their own Lionel Messi Appreciation Society had no issues letting Cristiano Ronaldo who they deemed to be the best player in the world before their World Cup playoff match against Portugal in 2009.
In more positive news – while a fortress in the past – it has seemed a little bit more penetrable in recent times. Bosnia have won their last three Euro qualifiers in Zenica (2-0 v Wales, 3-0 v Andorra and 3-1 v Israel) but they began their campaign with a 2-1 home loss to Cyrpus before a 1-1 draw with Belgium at the same venue one month later.
