World Cup participant team captain addresses the homeland and points to PSV player: “I wasn’t brave enough to watch.”

Bosnia and Herzegovina are gearing up with PSV player Esmir Bajraktarevic for their second appearance at the FIFA World Cup. The Bosnians managed to surprise everyone, friend and foe alike, on 31 March by settling matters with quadruple world champions Italy in the play-off final on penalties.

Aan Bajraktarevic had the honor of keeping a cool head and slotting the winning penalty. The winger did indeed keep his head cool and managed to send his country to the World Cup in North America, where Bajraktarevic & co. will play in Group B against fellow host Canada, Switzerland and Qatar.

Captain Edin Dzeko, now forty years old and active with FC Schalke 04, has written a letter to the children from the Balkan country. Dzeko was also active at the World Cup in 2014 with Bosnia, where the group stage was the end of the road, partly due to an incorrectly disallowed goal by the striker in the match against Nigeria.

In the letter that the captain writes to the Bosnian children, Dzeko, among other things, talks about his youth, which is above all characterized by the war in the former Yugoslavia, and about how his football career progressed. ''Dear children of Bosnia and Herzegovina, I have only one message: nothing is impossible. Nothing. We are lucky that we are Bosnians. I’m not saying that just as a man who lived his dream, but also as a boy who survived the war. I don’t like talking about the siege of Sarajevo, but it is important that you understand what it was like'', Dzeko writes in The Players' Tribute.

Then FC Schalke 04’s striker shares his experiences during the war in Yugoslavia, where Dzeko had to stay indoors with his family and, among other things, played board games. ''I was six when it started. I remember the first sirens, that my mother grabbed me, and that we hid behind the shoe cabinet. That was day one. It went on like that for four years. We didn’t really understand it all, but we were scared every day. When our house became too unsafe, we moved to my grandparents’ apartment. I think it was forty square meters. We lived there with fifteen people. Everyone slept on the floor. Every now and then, when it seemed quiet, mama would open the front door and I would play with the other children from the neighborhood. I’ll never forget her look. That faint smile because she loved seeing me play, but in her eyes there was also the worry that I might not come back'', the forward continues.

In the end, Dzeko together with his family survived the war and the striker’s dream of football began only fairly late as a result. ''We made it through. I’m amazed at how strong we were; we were just little children. But the war was pointless. All those innocent people dead, and for what? For money, power, and ego. For nothing, so. I feel sick when I see war on the news these days. I want to never see it, nowhere. But adults never learn. It seemed so impossible that I didn’t even dream about it. The grassy fields you see now were burned flat. I trained in a sports hall. After months, the ground was cleaned and they began painting white lines on the fields of scorched earth. I trained, and hoped one day to be first with my local club Zeljeznicar. When I was nineteen, a coach took me to the Czech Republic. Suddenly I found myself in Teplice'', the captain of Bosnia still remembers all too well.

Then the striker continues further into the course of his career. ''They bought me for 25,000 euros. Two years later I went to VfL Wolfsburg. Then for 37 million to Manchester City, and to AS Roma. I grew up in war; now I live a fairytale existence. Nothing is impossible. Not even with Bosnia to the World Cup. The first qualification in 2014 was the most beautiful day of our lives. It didn’t go our way at the World Cup, but now we’re back'', said Dzeko.

Finally, the captain looks back on the play-off final against Italy, in which PSV player Esmir Bajraktarevic is also mentioned. ''I was so afraid of Gianluigi Donnarumma. That guy is so big. I didn't have to take a penalty; I was injured. Luckily, our youngsters know how to do it. They don't overthink things, unlike us veterans. When Esmir Bajraktarevic took the decisive penalty, I didn't dare to look. Sergej Barbarez, the head coach, didn't either. Then I heard the explosion of joy. Our little country is going to the World Cup again. And remember: you are Bosnians. The world lies at your feet. I love you. Edin'', the striker concludes his letter.