Bosnia-Herzegovina coach Dusan Bajevic admits his team is decimated and could lose more players to COVID ahead of the Nations League clash with Italy.
The final Nations League match kicks off in Sarajevo on Wednesday at 19.45 GMT.
While Italy can lock down first place and passage to the Final Four, Bosnia are already relegated to League B after picking up just two points.
Bosnia-Herzegovina coach Dusan Bajevic admits his team is decimated and could lose more players to COVID ahead of the Nations League clash with Italy.
The final Nations League match kicks off in Sarajevo on Wednesday at 19.45 GMT.
While Italy can lock down first place and passage to the Final Four, Bosnia are already relegated to League B after picking up just two points.
“We have 21 players, two goalkeepers and three who are positive for COVID-19, so we’ll see what the results are from this morning’s tests,” said the coach in his press conference.
We know at least one of those who couldn't even join the squad for international duty because of COVID is Roma striker Edin Dzeko.
“Italy always play to win, as they are unbeaten in over 20 now. Everyone tried to beat them, Holland, Poland, and didn’t manage it.
“With their attitude, their pressing, even the way they sing the national anthem, you can feel their desire to win. Our ambitions are what they are, what they can be. Even though Italy are missing a lot of players too, they are still of a different level.”
Bosnian football has gone through a dark period lately, with coaching changes, poor results and controversy behind the scenes.
They also failed to qualify for the Euro 2020 play-offs after losing to Northern Ireland on penalties.
“We are certainly disappointed, because the situation is not good. We haven’t won a single game in 2020, found ourselves in a group with some of the best teams in the world and are 52nd in the FIFA ranking. This is the situation.
“I love Bosnia-Herzegovina whether we win or lose, but the biggest let-down was against Northern Ireland, as we really had to win that.
“There were some positives, as we got a point in Italy and perhaps could’ve won, while we got a draw with Holland. Let’s not forget, the Dutch squad is worth €500m, the Italian one €900m. We simply are not at that level.”