Serbia & Montenegro v Bosnia-Herzegovina: The war may have ended 10 years ago but the hatred lingers. Serbia-Montenegro play Bosnia-Herzegovina in a decisive qualifier tonight with fears of violence between the fans at the 53,000- capacity Marakana stadium.
The Bosnia-Herzegovina players have been forced to train under police guard at an isolated camp and their fans - the brave 1,000 who are expected to travel - will be escorted from the Bosnian border and back. During the game, they will be protected by riot police. Banners and firecrackers will be forbidden, as will selling or possessing alcohol within two miles of the stadium.
Both countries can still qualify for the World Cup, but the stakes are much higher than a place in next summer's showpiece. As Senad Rindal, a 43-year-old mechanical engineer from Sarajevo, said: "A Bosnian win would be greater than any other win of our team because of all the Muslims killed during the war. Payback, kind of, for all the misery we suffered."
When the two met in Sarajevo last October, the Bosnian fans held up a banner saying "We have 250,000 reasons to hate you", a reference to the estimated number of people killed by Serbian forces during the war. The away supporters responded by chanting the name of Bosnian Serb leader Radovan Karadzic, who is accused of leading the slaughter of the Muslims.
But the banners have been banished for this game and the Serbian police are confident they can control the supporters due to the small number of travelling fans. The authorities have received a list of all the names of the Bosnian fans who will attend the game, and Fifa have given permission for 50 white doves to be released ahead of kick-off in an attempt to reduce the tension.
The situation is a bit more complex than that, however, with up to 5,000 Serbs from enclaves in Bosnia expected to attend and support the home team.
"Our reality is unique in the world," said the president of the Bosnia-Herzegovina Football Federation, Munib Usanovic. "More fans from Bosnia will support Serbia-Montenegro than their own country."
It is a difficult game for the players too. The Serbia captain and former Aston Villa striker, Savo Milosevic, was born in Bosnia. "My name is one thing but how I feel is different. I feel Serbian," he said, before adding that the focus must now be on the football and not the past.
"Games between the former Yugoslav republics will always have a high level of pressure and tension attached to them, but I think that everything now is just about football and that the best team will win the game. And I am sure that it will be us.
"Our guests are going to play in front of more than 50,000 people. It was a similar situation for us in Sarajevo, but many people there supported us. Here everyone will be against Bosnia."
Serbia top the group but need to win tonight to be certain of going through as pool winners. A draw may still be enough as long as Spain do not defeat San Marino by more than four goals. The Bosnians, on 16 points, will leapfrog the Serbs if they win in Belgrade.
The Bosnia striker Elvir Bolic - who used to play for Red Star Belgrade at the Marakana but had to leave after threatening telephone calls - believes his team are in a good position. "We have no choice but to win. The pressure is on the hosts. We are not afraid of the heated atmosphere.
"I remember the atmosphere at the Marakana and it can make you lose your head. But I am an experienced 34-year-old now and I need to stay calm to make sure that my team take the three points. Serbia have not conceded at home yet, but they are the ones under pressure. Not us."
Guardian Service
:quality(70)/cloudfront-eu-central-1.images.arcpublishing.com/irishtimes/YVIRIOZQ35EWRPZXR27KGMO6YU.png)