Belgrade, March 22 (Reuters) - Yugoslavia coach Dejan Savicevic
has named Partizan Belgrade's teenage striker Danko Lazovic as one of
the three newcomers for a friendly against Brazil in Fortaleza next
Wednesday.
Savicevic was full of praise for the 18-year-old, who has scored several
vital goals for the Yugoslav league leaders since breaking into the first
team just before the winter break.
``He is definitely the most promising young player in the country and this
is kind of a reward for his good performances,'' the coach told reporters
after naming his 20-man squad.
The manager said the match against Brazil would show where Yugoslav
soccer stands after the national team failed to qualify for this year's World
Cup.
``We need to see where we are going and a match against the four-time
world champions is a perfect opportunity,'' he said. ``I think we will give
them a decent game.''
The other two newcomers are Red Star Belgrade midfielder Branko
Boskovic and Vojvodina Novi Sad's Radovan Krivokapic. All three are
likely to get a chance at some stage as Savicevic plans to mix youth with
experience.
``We need a combination of the two to give a team like Brazil a run for
their money,'' he said. ``They need no special introduction, we all know
what they are capable of.''
Savicevic named only six home-based players in the squad and once
again relied heavily on veterans playing across Europe.
They include Lazio central defender Sinisa Mihajlovic and Fiorentina
striker Predrag Mijatovic, who is yet to start a game for the struggling
Serie A side this season.
Chelsea's Slavisa Jokanovic is still the favourite defensive midfielder and
Zoran Mirkovic has been recalled to fill the right back position after
missing last month's 2-1 win over Mexico because of his club
commitments.
Squad
Goalkeepers: Dragoslav Jevric (Vitesse Arnhem), Dragan Zilic (Sartid Smederevo).
Defenders: Zoran Mirkovic (Fenerbahce Istanbul), Nenad Dzodic
(Montpellier), Sinisa Mihajlovic (Lazio), Mladen Krstajic (Werder
Bremen), Dejan Stefanovic (Vitesse), Boban Dmitrovic (GAK Graz).
Midfield: Slavisa Jokanovic (Chelsea), Nikola Lazetic (Fenerbahce),
Predrag Djordjevic (Olympiakos Piraeus), Ognjen Koroman (Dynamo
Moscow), Radovan Krivokapic (Vojvodina Novi Sad), Igor Dulja, Sasa
Ilic (both Partizan Belgrade), Branko Boskovic (Red Star Belgrade).
Forwards: Predrag Mijatovic (Fiorentina), Savo Milosevic (Real
Saragossa), Mateja Kezman (PSV Eindhoven), Danko Lazovic
(Partizan).
