Marko Ilić Finds Familiarity in Colorado, Seeks to Make Impact on Rapids’ Pitch

April 25, 2023 – Major League Soccer (MLS) – Colorado Rapids News Release

Last Tuesday, Marko Ilić set up camp by the exit of the outdoor training field.

Practice had just ended, but he had energy for a brief interview. As the questions rained in, his teammates trickled by behind him to get back to the indoor facility. He didn’t notice them initially, but soon, the passing ‘barks’ and witty comments aimed at his direction caused him to pause his response.

Ilić smiled.

It has been a little over two months since the Colorado Rapids acquired the Serbian goalkeeper on loan from Kortrijk, but his familiarity with his teammates and the city showed a level of comfort much deeper than the average two months. Last Tuesday, a teammate took him to his first hockey game – the first playoff game of the season for the Colorado Avalanche. The next day he went to his first Denver Nuggets game, where he would see someone he’s long admired play in person – Nikola Jokić.

To him, Denver is a city similar to home, even though his hometown Novi Sad, Serbia, is only half the population size. Now, despite uncertainties around his length of stay, he’s making it home.

Ilić grew up a few blocks away from downtown Novi Sad. He misses it to this day, but his dreams and the chase to achieve them brought him thousands of miles away to the city of Denver, where he is waiting to make his first-team debut as a goalkeeper for the Colorado Rapids. With the club potentially playing eight games in the month of May, he might not have to wait long before he gets a chance.

Since childhood, Ilić had always dreamt of being a professional athlete, and there was never a doubt in his mind that it would be through soccer. He had grown up a multi-sport athlete, however–to him, it’s essential to be. It doesn’t just provide a different physical perspective, but also helps bolster the mental fortitude required to play a sport at a high level.

And in his experience, that was judo.

“I was training judo when I was younger,” Ilić said. “I trained judo for seven years, and I was Serbian champion in judo.

“It helps with your confidence, to be honest because when you’re young, you’re going out on – we call it tatami – the ring. So you’re going by yourself and you decide your own fate. You decide your own battles, so that kind of gives you confidence as you start winning.”

And as a Serbian judo champion, he won a lot. He had always picked his battles with confidence. He’s confident the battle for playing…