You could accuse the two Serbs of getting old, but the financially ruinous Red Star – like many Eastern European clubs lacking platinum exports to boost their bottom line – was collapsing around them.

Just like that, Ninkovic and Dimitrijevic were gone. Red Stars became Sky Blues, and two more notches were etched in the A-League’s growing Eastern European bedpost.

Etched is probably the wrong word. These two salient Serbians took an axe to the A-League, hacking a clear path for future Eastern European marquees to follow.

In his first season, Dimitrijevic won every individual accolade Sydney had to offer, and a spot in the PFA Team of the Season. A year later, Ninkovic went one better, winning all of his compatriot’s previous awards and the Johnny Warren medal to boot.  

Since Dimitrijevic moved to Sydney, 15 Eastern Europeans have braved the 24-hour plane trip, to stamp their mark upon Australian shores.

They arrive from places some of us have never heard of, with last names we dare not try to pronounce, and when they’re terrible, like Tomislav Misura, they’re here one day and gone the next.

But when they’re great, they’re some of the finest names to ever grace the A-League. The A-League’s all-time highest goalscorer and arguably the greatest A-League import of all time, Albanian-Kosovar Besart Berisha, has scored 102 league goals in seven seasons in Australia, guiding two clubs to three A-League Championships.

Besart Berisha scores against Sydney FC in the 2017 A-League grand final

When you look at A-League imports over the years, Eastern Europe stacks up well. There’s been no shortage of bulky Brits, bungling Brazilians, dismal Dutchmen and jaded Japanese.

Yet there’s been very few clumsy Croats, selfish Serbs or had-it Hungarians. These may be generalisations, but the proof is in the pudding. Or should we say, baba ghanouch.

Reigning champions Sydney FC wholly relied on a contingent of three Eastern European imports to win the Championship-Premiership double last season; Serbian midfielders Ninkovic and Dimitrijevic, and Slovakian forward Filip Holosko.

These three battle-hardened campaigners used their experience of biting Balkan winters and stadiums lit clearer by flares than floodlights to teach the A-League what a quality foreign signing looks like.  

Australia’s ability to attract Eastern Europeans extends beyond their region’s problems. While A-League salaries are generally lower than those in Russia, Serbia, Croatia or Ukraine, marquee wages are often just one strong season away.

But Australia still offers a greater standard of living than many Eastern European nations. Our clubs offer excellent facilities and – with a few notable exceptions – players are paid in full, and on time.

Eastern European influence on Australian football is no new development. Throughout the 20th century former Yugoslavians flocked to Australia in droves, and the likes of Eddie Krncevic played a large role in building Australian football’s reputation.

But now Eastern Europeans are arriving as fully fledged footballers, and they bring another world of knowledge with them.

Perhaps it’s just the superior level in the East, but these footballers often endure significant hardships to make it this far. They’re often not as financially secure as imports from other nations, and they might not be as keen to return home.

Red Star Belgrade fans riot against police

Footage of Balkan football can make many Australians quiver in their Blundstones.

At its worst, it is downright ugly, but at its best it evokes a passion and commitment that’s created – in spite of squalid conditions and rife corruption – many of the greatest footballers of all time.

While we all wish for a return to the glory days of Valeriy Lobanovskiy, Hristo Stoichkov, Gheorghe Hagi and Ferenc Puskas, sadly football in Eastern Europe teeters on the precipice.

But if the A-League can provide opportunities to these footballers, Eastern Europe’s loss, could be Australia’s gain.