Star of our new SEHA - Gazprom League 7m exclusive interview is Stefan Vujic. Famous for his attractive moves but also career path which started in Porec and then took him through Zagreb all the way to Romanian Steaua while at the same time changing national team jersey from Croatian to Serbian, Stefan shared with us what SEHA League looks like through the eyes of league rookies from Bucharest while at the same time predicting who will we see in SEHA Final4 semis. 

How is the recovery process going with your injury?
I can’t say it’s in the past really but I feel like I’m getting there slowly. Warm-up usually goes well but mornings are the biggest problem. I didn’t run for about a month so I’ll obviously need some time to get in the right rhythm. We have five more matches ahead of us in December and I feel like I’ll be 100% ready by the end of the year. 

How far do you think can Steaua go in SEHA Gazprom League this season? Do you feel like you’ll be able to reach goals you set for yourselves?
Definitely. Injuries obviously did hurt us a little and I feel like in case we managed to stay healthy we would have a great chance to fight for the final tournament. Not, it’s difficult to predict anything honestly. Match against Zagreb is scheduled for Tuesday, only 52 hours after our match against Calarasi. In case we manage to stay close until final 15 minutes of the encounter we might have a chance to reach a positive result. 

What does SEHA - Gazprom League mean for Steaua?
SEHA is a great project. We’d make an even bigger use of it if we weren’t dealing with as much injuries. It’s really useful for young players because they have a chance to play against teams and players who are participating in EHF Champions League and EHF Cup which is great. We didn’t want to miss that opportunity but the schedule is obviously quite tough. We don’t regret it however because we’re aware all the injuries didn’t occur during SEHA League matches but during the last season and they simply didn’t heal properly. 

Which teams do you see as main favorites in SEHA -Gazprom Final4 race?
Tough question. A lot depends on Meshkov and their approach. Vardar are once again main favorites to go all the way. PPD Zagreb, Nexe and Tatran seem to have their positions locked at the moment but let’s see what happens with Belarusian champions until the end of the season. We must not leave them out of the equation yet.  

What about Romanian Championship? How far can Steaua go this season after finishing second last year?
Situation is quite complicated. Everything will become clear in April when the Play-Offs start. Last year we dominated the first part of the season but as the season progressed we were kind of slowing down in the end losing the title to Dinamo. We’re now dealing with a lot of injuries which means all these players will catch proper form in January or February and the situation will look a lot different in April.

After France and Croatia your career path took you to Bucharest.
We have a good roster, great team and I have a good status in this team myself. Matches in Romania are quite narrow and I can say I’m satisfied. I don’t think about the future a lot, I just like to enjoy the moment and when the time comes I’ll decide what next. 

You missed the last EHF week due to your injury. Next challenge will be World Championship in Germany and Denmark. 
It wasn’t an easy decision but all the matches, pressure and intensity took their toll on my foot. I feel bad as well as other players who weren’t able to help Serbia against Belgium and Switzerland. WCh is ahead and we’ll need time to get things to work in the right way with our new coach Nenad Perunicic and all new younger players in our roster. We’ll need time but I feel like we have a nice future ahead.