The former Osijek captain and Croatian international ended his professional career due to a knee injury and is returning to his Sloga from Novi Mikanovci, with candid reflections on his career, working with Modrić, and marking Ronaldo.
Mile Škorić (35), Osijek's legendary captain with a record 334 appearances and seven caps for the Croatian national team, has decided to end his professional career. The reason is the mysterious knee problems he battled for nearly a year and a half, and this summer he made the final decision. He chose to round off his rich career by returning to his hometown club, Sloga from Novi Mikanovci, a member of the 2nd ŽNL Vukovar-Srijem, where he took his first football steps.
Despite having an offer from Marsonia, Škorić opted for a romantic return to the sixth tier of competition. "I had an offer from Marsonia and I thanked them. Veldin Karić showed great desire and a project, and I told them I would really help if I were at 100 percent. I can't when it's not like that, and that's still a more serious level of competition," he explained in an interview with Index.hr.
Sloga had called him earlier, and he accepted the proposal to register him. He will be coached by his first coach and friend, Želja Mravunac Mrav. "I said I would finish where I started. I told them to register me and that I would try to play a bit for myself, as much as my knees allow," added Škorić.
The knee problems became unbearable. "As soon as I start training, it's fine for 2-3 minutes, and then suddenly it cuts through me as if I have to buckle. I couldn't continue anymore; it keeps happening to me," he described his condition. He tried everything: blocks, injections, stem cells, arthroscopy, even hyaluronic gel, but nothing gave lasting results. "After a hundred meters of running, it starts to give way, and then after that, the pain returns," he added.
He made the final decision last winter. "Last winter. By then, a long time had passed. I tried to train and play, but the same thing kept happening. I knew it was over then," he admitted.
The wider public remembers Škorić for the match against Portugal in November 2020 at Poljud, where Cristiano Ronaldo was almost invisible. "He played for Juventus that season and scored about 40 goals. He was a real beast; I saw that at the first corner. It's different from the HNL. I had to be incredibly focused," he recalled.
Despite the praise, he remained humble: "Of course, I'm glad I received praise after that match. But football is a team sport, and we lost that match. I wasn't satisfied." He earned seven caps for the national team, and given the strong competition, he says it feels like "57."
He speaks of Luka Modrić with special respect. "A doctor, a magician. For me, better than Iniesta and Xavi; the man has a Golden Ball. What are we talking about? It's like he has rearview mirrors," he said, adding what impressed him most: "He's the best, but he never gets angry if someone doesn't understand his idea. He's always positive, encouraging everyone around him."
He compared Ivan Perišić to Ronaldo in terms of physical attributes, while describing Joško Gvardiol as a genetic beast. "We play rondo, and after ten minutes, we need to run at 50 percent up and down. He runs that 50 percent so easily, as if he doesn't get tired, while I literally feel like I'm sprinting," he recounted.
Škorić is extremely self-critical, giving himself a 5/10 rating for his career. "I'm strict because I didn't invest enough in myself as I should have. I didn't treat myself the way a player should in those earlier years," he admitted. He believes he had more talent than he showed, and he highlights the frequent position changes as a key issue: "I played full-back, center-back, in midfield, on the wing-just not in goal."
He was most honest when talking about his youth: "Maybe I wasn't honest with myself until I was 25. I wasn't professional, and then football eventually gives you back what you put into it." In the future, he wants to stay in football, and scouting currently appeals to him the most.
Although he didn't receive a call from Osijek, Škorić isn't bitter. "No one called me. I never pushed myself or offered myself," he said. On the state of his club, he commented: "It's not normal for an Osijek to fight for survival. Some bad decisions were made, and there were many changes. I'm not against foreigners, but in some positions, there must be more domestic people."
He speaks with special respect about Nenad Bjelica, with whom he fought for the title until five rounds before the end. "He gave everyone a chance; he knew how to rotate. His measure was the pitch, not names. He's also an excellent motivator," he concluded.
