A well-known Serb in Poland is threatening Lech. Red Star's budget? A mere 340 million złoty.

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Maciej Kaliszuk: Lech Poznań will face Crvena Zvezda in the Champions League qualifiers. How do you assess their chances?

Dragomir Okuka (former Legia Warsaw and Wisła Kraków coach) : It's going to be very tough for Lech. Zvezda is the favorite. Lech will struggle to get a good result, especially at the Marakana [Belgrade stadium]. Zvezda hasn't had such a strong team in a long time.

It strengthened significantly over the summer.

The biggest stars there earn €2-3 million each. Arnautović has already joined from Inter Milan, and Tadić will follow. They've also acquired a good winger [Shavy Babicka from Toulouse for €4 million] and a defensive midfielder from Slovakia [Mahmudo Bajo from Dunejska Streda]. And if Tadić arrives and Arnautović starts playing in the starting lineup, they'll be even stronger. Tadić probably won't play against Lech yet, but the others could feature. Lech is an attacking team, but Zvezda is also attacking. They're constantly pushing forward. Of course, it's only two matches, and we'll see what happens; it's just football, and anything is possible, but Lech will have big problems. Everything will be decided at Marakana.

Arnautović and Tadić are both 36 years old and have probably passed their peak.

These players are born to play in matches like this. That's why they come. They've already played in the Champions League, they have experience.

What are Crvena Zvezda's weaker points?

Last season they didn't perform well defensively, but they added a very good goalkeeper, Matheus, and new defenders – Rodrigao, who played for Zenit St. Petersburg, Serbian international Veljković, and Armenian international Tiknizjan from Lokomotiv Moscow, so this formation will now also be very strong.

If Crvena Zvezda doesn't qualify for the Champions League, will it be a big disappointment?

Yes, because there's no competition in the country. This season, they'll easily win the league again. Last season, they won the title with a 27-point lead over Partizan. It'll be the same this time. They have a budget of €70-80 million. Therefore, competing in European competitions is paramount for them.

Can you say something about Lech?

I watched his match in Iceland [in the previous round of Champions League qualifying against Breidablik, Kolejorz won 7-1 at home and 1-0 away] and against Lechia Gdańsk [the Polish champions won 4-3]. Lech plays very well going forward, but has some problems in defense.

Meanwhile, your former team, Legia Warsaw, eliminated Baník Ostrava in the second round of the Europa League qualifying round. Are you still following their performance?

I know they won, but they were a bit lucky that their opponents missed a penalty in the last minute. Legia is a brand and they're moving forward. Last season they reached the Conference League quarterfinals, and this season I think they'll take a step forward and qualify for the Europa League.

First, Cypriot AEK Larnaca must pass.

AEK is a good team, though; they eliminated Partizan Belgrade in the previous round. Legia will have a tough time, but I think they're the favorites.

Were you surprised that Legia only finished fifth in the Ekstraklasa last season?

It was a very big surprise, but now she will fight for the championship and I hope she will finally win it.

Poland has made a step forward and is now 13th in the UEFA rankings. Would you agree that the Ekstraklasa is stronger now than it was when you managed Legia and Wisła Kraków?

Yes. The Polish league is progressing, and there are some great stadiums there. I watched the Jagiellonia vs. Novi Pazar match in Białystok and saw that there was a very good atmosphere.

Well, in the previous round of the Conference League, there was another Polish-Serbian clash, with Jagiellonia defeating FK Novi Pazar. Were you surprised by that?

I wasn't there. Novi Pazar was a huge surprise to even qualify for European competition, so I wasn't surprised they lost to Jagiellonia. In Serbia, only Crvena Zvezda and Partizan are strong.

He has a lot of problems now and is weaker than before.

Yes, but he's playing well now, too, and he's betting on young players. The other clubs are weaker. In Poland, Jagiellonia, Raków, and Lech could become champions, and Śląsk Śląsk came close. Here, only Red Star and Partizan could win it, and now it's just Red Star.

Speaking of Polish clubs in European cups, you also achieved some success when you advanced with Wisła Kraków to the group stage of the UEFA Cup.

Those were good times. It's a shame that president Cupiał fired me quite quickly [after three months]. And now Wisła is in the second league [the first league according to the official name]. It really surprised me.

Finally, I'd like to ask about the great tragedy that befell you. A year ago, your daughter Żana died. She was 36 years old.

She was sick for three years. We traveled to Paris, trying everything to help her. It's very hard to live after what happened, and time doesn't heal wounds. It's only been a year, anyway. But I'm fighting because life has to go on.

How are you feeling physically?

Everything's fine. I'd still like to find a job. I haven't been interested in it until now, but I thought I might want to work [Dragomir Okuka is 71 years old and hasn't managed a team since 2019].

In Serbia or somewhere abroad?

Maybe in Serbia, maybe something will come up in our federation. I'm not planning on retiring yet.