Sandro Sukno, the winner of the first Total Player Award (in 2017), has officially become the head coach of Primorac Kotor.
The negotiations between Sukno and the Montenegrin club started a few months ago. The talks were resumed ten days ago after Primorac got new management, led by two former club’s stars. Mladjan Janovic was appointed as Primorac’s president, while Antonio Petrovic became the sporting director.
And the contract was finally signed today.
“With this signature, we can say that we have officially agreed and that I have become the coach of Primorac, which makes me extremely pleased – Sukno said
“We all in the club, led by president Janovic, are moving into a serious organization of job because Primorac deserves to come back on the right track, where it was ten years ago.
In 2009, Primorac surprised Europe by winning the Champions League. The Kotor-based club finished 2nd in the Champions League the next year, but quickly after, the crisis started.
Sukno thinks that Primorac has talented players, but they haven’t good working conditions. The indoor pool in Kotor is closed for a long time.
“We expect the pool to be re-opened soon so that we can organize the entire structure of the club and start working seriously. In the foreseeable future, we expect to achieve good results. We want to win. “, Sukno emphasized.
Mladjan Janovic said that the club management had evaluated that Sukno would be the right solution for a new head coach.
“We believe that the fact that they have a water polo legend like Sandro Sukno as a coach will be an additional stimulus for our young players in the senior team. With this move, we also show that we are determined to return Primorac to the path of success. We are aware that we have a long way to go, but we are also convinced that with hard work and such water polo names, like Sukno is, we can succeed “, Janovic concluded.
Sukno played for Jug, Primorje, and Pro Recco. Last year he was forced to retire at the age of 29, because of medical reasons. After successful heart surgery in the USA in 2018, Sukno hoped that he could get back into the pool. He even signed a contract with Jug, but he had to finish playing career.
As a member of the Croatian national team, he won the Olympic gold in 2012, and silver at the 2016 Olympic Games and many other medals. His first experience in the coaching job was the work in the national team of Croatia. Since 2019 he has been Ivica Tucak’s assistant.
Primorac started composing the team for the new season. The first reinforcement is Aleksa Ukropina, who came from OSC Budapest. Several players extended their contracts.
(Quotes source: Primorac press release)
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