“The president's people and everyone from Kyrgyz Republic contacted me and invited me to come to Bishkek,” said Prosinecki. “I came to see the infrastructure, to see everything they have here, to talk with them, and I was very impressed.

“They invited me to spend about 10 days here. I looked at the infrastructure, spoke with them, and they wanted me to come and do something with the Kyrgyz Republic national team.

“What impressed me most is how much the sport here has been improving recently. They're building new training facilities, and they have a new stadium.

“The people here really love football, there are many talented young players coming through, and I see this as a great opportunity for the country and for myself to achieve something important for football.”

The former Real Madrid and FC Barcelona great obviously saw something in Kyrgyz Republic’s AFC U23 Asian Cup Saudi Arabia 2026™ campaign that he took to heart despite their group stage exit.

In the latest international friendly against Palestine in June, five players from that Under-23 squad were called up with Kurmanbek Nurlanbekov, Said Datsiev, Kimi Merk, Beknaz Almazbekov and Bektur Kochkonbaev given the opportunity to impress.

Prosinecki believes that Kyrgyz Republic, set for their third consecutive Finals appearance, should at least aim for a repeat of the debut outing in 2019 when they reach the Round of 16.

“I've been watching many of the young players who competed in the AFC U-23 Asian Cup. We have a new generation of players who are already performing well.

“Our goal is to be as prepared as possible for the AFC Asian Cup in January. We don't have much time, so I'll try to improve the team's football. The players have talent, we have good footballers, and I believe we can build a very strong national team.

“We still have several months before the Asian Cup, and we'll do everything we can to improve every day. We'll have a proper preparation period and several friendly matches before the tournament. Our first objective is to get through the group stage.”

In his playing days, Prosinecki wore the colours of Yugoslavia and then Croatia, and starred in the FIFA U-20 World Cup in 1987 where he helped the former win the title which also landed him the Golden Ball award.

When Yugoslavia broke up and Croatia was formed, he became a key figure in their incredible FIFA World Cup 1998 debut that saw them denied at the semi-final stage by eventual champions France.

It was a team built on skills matched with strong grit and desire, ingredients which the former midfielder believes Kyrgyz Republic have in abundance.

“We'll try to play the best football possible. Of course, it's difficult to compare with Croatia or the former Yugoslavia, where there has always been outstanding talent. For a country of only three million people to finish second or third in the World Cup is extraordinary.

“But we'll keep working to improve, and little by little football in the country (Kyrgyz Republic) will continue to grow. With better infrastructure, new football pitches, and children who truly love the game, I'm optimistic about the future.”

The immediate focus, however, is the AFC Asian Cup with Kyrgyz Republic having three-time winners Islamic Republic of Iran, Syria and China PR for company but Prosinecki’s confidence couldn’t be pricked.

“I'm very happy because I've seen how much people in the country love football. I also believe this new generation of young players can achieve something special. They have enthusiasm, they have talent and with time, we'll see what we can accomplish. Every coach needs time to build a team.

“Overall, I'm satisfied. Of course there are things we still need to improve on, but I don't want to talk about that now. We'll keep working and I hope that in the future, Kyrgyz Republic will become a stronger football nation with an excellent new generation of players.”