When Sweden won the gold in U18-European Championship, Nikola Roganovic was named the tournament's most valuable player. Last summer, he also received the award as the best center at the U19-World Championship.
In the handball league, bottom-tipped HK Malmö is in second place – the same position as Roganovic has in the top scorer league.
Wherever the 19-year-old is, it seems to be a success.
We are quite pleased with the start, 13 out of 16 points, so it is absolutely approved. For my part, it has gone quite well, a bit tricky at the end only, says Roganovic humbly.
Future key player
This week, the men's national team gathers for double training matches against Spain. Thursday's meeting will be Roganovic's third with the A-national team.
It's damn fun to be back here again. Always fun to be in this environment, he says and continues:
It will, of course, be incredibly much focus on performing, but it's a fine group so it's still a lot of fun and you can joke a lot in between.
National team coach Michael Apelgren saw it as a matter of course to include Roganovic in the squad.
We want to try to make a generation shift and then it's about trying to find the players we think are the future, and he is one of them, says Apelgren.
"Honorable"
He describes Roganovic as a "pretty complete" nine-meter player, who will become a key player in the national team.
If it takes five years, one year, or a few months, you never know with players of that age, but that we believe very much in him is no question.
On January 17, Sweden will make its debut against the Netherlands in the European Championship group play in Malmö, and Roganovic, of course, hopes he gets a place in the squad.
It would mean incredibly much. To play a championship at home would be fantastic. It would have been honorable to be able to contribute, and that's what I'm striving for, he says.
Born: July 27, 2006 (19 years old).
Club: HK Malmö.
Mother club: H43 Lund.
Other clubs: Eskilstuna Guif (2019–2025)
National team games/goals: 2/1.
Other: Moving to the German Bundesliga and Gummersbach after the season. Trained in HK Malmö by his father Zoran Roganovic, who is the handball league's top scorer, and Nikolas' big brother Marko plays handball in Denmark.
"It felt like a matter of course when I was there and talked to them. I'm satisfied with my choice", he says about the move.
Current: For the second time selected in the national team squad, for the training matches in Linköping and Eskilstuna against Spain.
