Big-hitting Vidic puts rocky start behind him




Those who admire Nemanja Vidic often say he bears a striking resemblance to the big-hitting Russian in Rocky IV and the Manchester United defender has compared the Premiership to 15 rounds in the ring.

"Every game is like a boxing match for me," Vidic recently revealed. So, it seems, is every training session.

Vidic has quite a reputation when it comes to leaving his mark on team-mates, even if he ends up hurting himself.

In June, his desire to exact revenge on Mateja Kezman during a Serbia and Montenegro squad practice match left him with an injury that ruled him out of the World Cup and Sir Alex Ferguson is said to wince at the sight of him attempting to slice Louis Saha in two. "Watch the tackling!" cries Ferguson, even if he does demand commitment from his players.

But there is more to Vidic than the Ivan Drago image. More inside the head than a slightly psychopathic desire to do to opponents what Dolph Lundgren's Drago once did to Apollo Creed.

Sadness and pain also drive a player who has firmly established himself alongside Rio Ferdinand at the centre of the United defence. Sadness born out of the loss of his closest friend and colleague at Red Star Belgrade who, in October 2001, collapsed and died from a heart attack in front of him during a training session.

Vladimir Dimitrijevic was a promising 20-year-old striker and the two were inseparable. "We dreamt the same dreams, wanted to touch the sky with Red Star, but unfortunately Vlada is not with us any more," said Vidic after captaining Red Star to a domestic double in 2004. "When I play, I think about my friend and I will do everything I can to save his memory."

Everything he does he is doing rather well at the moment, as Stuart Pearce has no doubt noted in preparation for Saturday's Manchester derby at Old Trafford. Not only does Vidic stop the opposition from scoring but, as Benfica discovered on Wednesday, he scores goals too. "Defenders win you games," says Ferguson. "And he is a top defender."

To begin with, however, Vidic did not find it easy to adapt to life in Manchester. "When I first arrived at the club I hadn't trained for more than 40 days," said Vidic, who moved from Spartak Moscow last January for around £7million. "The season in Russia had finished and I had a few injuries. I had a whole new environment to get used to, a new country, a new club, a new set of team-mates, and I needed time to adjust.

"It was very difficult at the start but everything has been getting better and better and I'm feeling happier and stronger every day. I'm slowly improving my form and I think that I can become a much better player at this club."

But there were other problems to overcome. "When I moved from Belgrade to Moscow it wasn't such a big move in terms of the cultural differences," he said. "The way of life and the weather in those cities is not so different.

"When I arrived in England it was a very big difference. Things like driving on the other side of the road were very difficult for me to get used to. I started driving on my second day in Manchester and it was very confusing at first. I hit the kerb a few times.

"The food is also very different to the food in Serbia and Russia. People putting milk in tea was so strange, although now I have tried it I have to say that I don't mind it."

The language barrier is something he turned into a challenge. He might have been in England for less than a year but he has an ongoing competition with Cristiano Ronaldo and takes great pride in speaking English with more authority than his Portuguese team-mate.

Vidic, who spoke only a few words of English when he arrived, said: "I'm taking lessons and I've got a lot better. I hope to be perfect in future."

Perfection, for Vidic, comes in the form of clean sheets and a growing understanding with centre back partner Rio Ferdinand. Ferguson has dared compare them to Gary Pallister and Steve Bruce, which Vidic sees as a huge compliment.

"Rio and I get along really well and we're starting to play well together too," he said. "We haven't conceded as many goals as last season and I find it very easy playing alongside Rio. He's a great player with plenty of experience, but the most important thing is the excellent communication between us.

"English football is so demanding and I don't think you can play unless you are 100 per cent fit. The game here is so quick and when you are playing every Saturday and Wednesday it can be very tough. It's one of the best leagues in the world, but it's also very physical.

"That's why I say it's like a boxing match. Nowhere else can you be as physical with opponents. I prepare for every match telling myself that I will be up against the best striker in the world because you always have to be ready for a battle."

Vidic is a modest man. The finest footballer in Serbia and one of the first people in Belgrade to own two mobile phones might have opted for a Hello magazine-style wedding, but instead chose a modest mountain restaurant near his home town to marry Ana, who is expecting their first child any day now.

Ferguson has gone out of his way to make sure the couple settle in Manchester and Vidic is quick to acknowledge as much. "When I first arrived there was a lot of pressure on me because the club had spent a lot of money and people didn't know who I was, but the manager took all the pressure off and really helped me get settled in."

As City will no doubt discover, he is starting to repay his manager in full.