Partizan Belgrade head coach Aleksandar Stanojevic was left with injuries after his club’s fans broke into the dressing room following a four-goal defeat by Red Star Belgrade.
A hat-trick from Senegal international forward Cherif Ndiaye fired Red Star to a 4-0 win on Monday night, a third-successive victory over their rivals in a meeting that is known as the Eternal derby.
The 50-year-old had a plaster on his head and one on his nose during his post-match press conference where he confirmed an incident where Partizan fans vandalised his side’s dressing room.
“Disgruntled fans broke the glass, it’s unpleasant,” Stanojevic said after the game, as reported by Reuters.
Partizan players apologised to fans after a defeat to Red Star in April 2024 (Srdjan Stevanovic/Getty Images)
“I came with band-aids to the press conference, but there’s no reason to make a theatre. There was nothing more, no fight, no physical conflict. It’s no drama.”
Partizan’s home defeat came amid a hostile atmosphere and calls for Stanojevic to step down with the club now without a victory in any of their last eight matches across all competitions and ninth in the league table, with 11 points from their opening seven matches.
Stanojevic’s coaching career has spanned two decades and this is his third stint in charge at Partizan, having won the Serbian league title in 2010 and 2011 with the capital club.
Partizan and Red Star fans typically light hundreds of flares and smokebombs during the Eternal derby (Srdjan Stevanovic/Getty Images)
“I apologise to every Partizan fan, I apologise for the way we lost the game,” the former defender said. “I take responsibility and this is mine, the worst defeat in my career. It’s my fault how we lost the game. It’s a shame for all of us. And for me, the biggest.”
The city rivals are Serbia’s two biggest clubs but Red Star have won each of the most recent seven Serbian league titles and they currently lead the Serbian SuperLiga.
Red Star are participating in this season’s Champions League while Partizan missed out on a Conference League spot after a play-off defeat to Belgian club Gent.
GO DEEPER
Derby Days, Belgrade: The Eternal Derby
(Top image: Srdjan Stevanovic/Getty Images)
