Milan have never played a match in Kosovo. Granted, Kosovo
has only existed as an independent nation since 2008, and it probably wasn’t
the safest place for Milan to travel to for a while. So this friendly is
historic, and honestly a little exciting to witness. Maybe it won’t be a
Champions League final kind of match, but increasing goodwill throughout the
world is something that football does best.
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| Feronikeli played in the Champions League this year. That's all I'm saying. |
FC Feronikeli are based in Glogovac, Kosovo, however their
home stadium only seats 6,000. So this match will be played in the capital,
Pristina, at the Stadiumi Fadil Vokrri, which holds 13,500 fans. Not only do
they have a badass mascot, “The Black Tigers,” Feronikeli won Kosovo’s top
division, the Football Superleague of Kosovo this season. They also have a new coach,
the newly appointed Montenegrin Dejan Vukicevic. They actually were in the
qualifying rounds of the Champions League this year, being knocked down to the
Europa League qualifying rounds after their defeat in the first qualifying
rounds to Welsh side The New Saints. In the Europa League, they were defeated
Slovakian side Slovan Bratislava. But still. They were in the Champions League
this year, and Milan were not.
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| Excited to see the new man in action |
Milan continue to accumulate more players from transfers,
holidays, or recuperating from injury. This match will see Rafael Leao called
up for the first time, and Paqueta retruning from holiday. Meanwhile, Pepe
Reina will miss due to illness and Caldara and Hernandez are still injured. New
signing Duarte was not called up, and Bennacer will not be arriving until later
this week.
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| Football legends being welcomed to Kosovo |
I don’t know if this friendly was set up to humble the Milan
players, to face a team that actually did qualify for the Champions League, or
to give Giampaolo an opponent he might actually be able to win against. Either
way, this match makes history, for Milan, for Kosovo, and for Feronikeli. Of course, it will give both new coaches a
chance to see their teams against new opponents, but it also gives Milan fans
in the region a chance to see them there for the first time ever. Painting the
world red and black is amazing, and even better to be spreading the joy of
football throughout the world. This one is not just another friendly.
This post inspired by the music of U2’s
“One”
KF Feronikeli vs. AC Milan
Saturday, August
10 • 20:45 CEST (2:45pm EDT)
This match will be
broadcast on Milan’s Facebook page