Why Luka Vuskovic won’t be unprepared for his Premier League bow with Brighton

Luka Vuskovic’s meticulous matchday habits explain why Brighton’s new centre-back is unlikely to be undercooked for his Premier League debut.

On 17 June, before Croatia’s World Cup opener against England in Dallas, he was on the phone to Serbia-based analyst Nenad Sarcevic, a ritual he often follows on the bus or in the dressing room, according to NY Times.

England won 4-2 and the 19-year-old was withdrawn midway through the second half after Harry Kane had already scored twice, yet by then he was close to completing a £49 million move from Tottenham to Brighton. The fee broke Brighton’s record, previously £40 million for Georginio Rutter from Leeds United in summer 2024, and Vuskovic did not play a competitive game for Spurs.

Vuskovic has worked with Netherlands-based Smart 11 since October 2024. While on loan at Westerlo from Hajduk Split, after Tottenham announced his signing in September 2023 when he was 16 and unable to move to the UK until 2025, he scored twice against Beerschot, catching the eye of Smart 11 chief Marco Boskers.

Smart 11’s sessions typically use 15 defensive and 15 attacking clips over 45 to 60 minutes, with question-led prompts rather than instructions. For Vuskovic, they narrow the focus near kick-off to avoid information overload.

During a standout loan at Hamburg last season, he scored six goals in 28 league games. Before facing Union Berlin he took a call in the away dressing room, then made a record-equalling 18 aerial clearances in a 0-0 draw, the first to do so in a single match in Europe’s top five leagues over the last five seasons.

Smart 11 work with 20 to 25 players and clubs including PSV, Vitesse Arnhem and Bayer Leverkusen. Vuskovic’s willingness to analyse moments before kick-off is considered unusual, compared with others such as Bram Nautink who prefer early-morning reviews.

His World Cup amounted to 66 minutes, his only outing under Zlatko Dalic, with Croatia exiting 2-1 to Portugal in the last 32. He still held a session before the 1-0 win over Panama and was praised for handling non-selection with maturity.

After signing, he called Brighton “the biggest machine in the world for producing young players”. There are no guarantees with any transfer, but his preparation levels look assured.

Source: NY Times