Marko Mamić Back in Zagreb After 14 Years
The Croatian national team player returns home as the biggest signing for the Croatian champions, revealing his Champions League ambitions, demanding preparations, and his new role in defense.
The Croatian national team player returns home as the biggest signing for the Croatian champions, revealing his Champions League ambitions, demanding preparations, and his new role in defense.
After a full 14 years playing abroad, Croatian handball national team player Marko Mamić has returned to Croatia and become one of eight new faces in the squad of RK Zagreb under new coach Hrvoje Horvat. Mamić, who began his handball career at RK Moslavina and spent the last seasons with Germany's Leipzig, highlights the excellent atmosphere and the team's determination to surpass results from previous seasons.
"The atmosphere in the team is excellent; you can see that the guys who were already in Zagreb are happy to have new company and that the squad has changed. I already get the sense that everyone is determined to achieve more than in recent seasons. The coach is new, everything is great, and we're working well," Mamić told Sportske novosti.
Zagreb completed altitude training in Slovenia's Rogla this summer, with focus now on the Champions League. Mamić is realistic about expectations in a group with formidable opponents. "There's no need to overthink it; the group is what it is. PSG and Aalborg are favorites, and we'll battle Celje for four points. Of course, our plan is to 'threaten' the French and Danes as well, but we'll see how things unfold. After two friendly matches, given the early stage of preparations, you can already see some outlines of our play, and I'm confident we'll be good," he said.
The club is clear in its goals: winning both domestic trophies, and in Europe, victories against Celje and seeking points against the favorites. Mamić is particularly pleased with the new competition format, which even in case of elimination from the Champions League allows the season to continue in the European League. "I also like the new competition system where, even if we drop out of the Champions League, we continue in the European League. That cup is also very strong," he added.
Preparations in Rogla were extremely demanding. Mamić admits he can't recall harder training sessions in his career. "That was a huge relief for us, even though we trained for ten days in a very intense rhythm without a break, twice a day. We worked intensively, hard-I don't remember ever training this hard in my career. We were pushing our limits. On Thursday we finally got a day off to catch some air. Physically and mentally, we endured it well because from the start we were all on the same 'wavelength'," he said.
Despite numerous changes in the squad, adaptation hasn't been an issue. Mamić revealed that he knows most of his teammates from before, including Štrlek, Jovica Nikolić, Kalaraš, and Kastelic, whom he faced in the Bundesliga. "I'm satisfied with the team roster; we have a larger number of players, and the key is that health stays on our side," he emphasized.
Although he was the top scorer in younger categories, Mamić is now profiled as a defensive specialist. He accepted this role after a serious cruciate ligament injury and demanding seasons in the Bundesliga. "It's clear; I should bring some stability and security to the defense, that will be my main task. A few years ago, I had a nasty cruciate ligament injury and struggled to come back from it. The Bundesliga is demanding; at that moment I felt some personal limits, and the coach also concluded that I would be most useful in that defensive phase," he explained.
Mamić's path to Zagreb led through several European leagues. At 17, instead of Zagreb, he went to Swiss club Schaffhausen (2012-2015), where he played in the Champions League. Then came French club Dunkerque (2015-2017), where he received his first national team call-up, followed by Polish club Kielce (2017-2019). He spent the longest time in Leipzig (2019-2026), leaving after the club was relegated to the second division.
The return to Zagreb was prompted by a call from director Damir Bičanić. "I had offers from Bundesliga clubs, but when director Damir Bičanić called and presented the project, after 'consultations' with my wife, I said-why not Zagreb?! I wanted to stay abroad a bit longer, but I still have time. Now Zagreb is the only thing on my priority list," Mamić recounted, adding that he is already happy with his decision and confident that "a good story is being put together" at the club.
Mamić made his national team debut in 2015, and his first major tournament was the 2016 European Championship in Poland, where Croatia won bronze. Then came the 2016 Rio Olympics, where the 'Cowboys' played brilliantly in the group stage but were eliminated by Poland. A particularly painful memory is the 2017 World Championship in France, where Croatia was eliminated in the semifinals after a missed penalty by Zlatko Horvat.
After a fifth-place finish at the 2018 home World Championship, a "small black streak" followed, including his injury at the 2022 European Championship in Hungary. He missed the 2019 World Championship in Germany due to injury. Despite everything, he has won four medals with the national team. "We've now made it to the semifinals twice in a row and taken medals, and that's not a coincidence," concluded Mamić, who believes this positive streak will continue.
An important factor in Mamić's decision was the support of his wife Lucija Mlinar, a former volleyball national team player. The couple has a five-month-old son, and Mamić emphasizes that without her understanding, given his commitments during preparations and travel, nothing would be possible. "That's also an important part of the story. The kid is growing; he'll soon be five months old. Without the understanding of my wife Lucija, it would be hard for anything to work, but she also has a sporting 'pedigree' and understands everything completely," he said.
