Radovic (pictured right centre with Stojkovic and Kennedy) played alongside Nagoya number two Bosko Djurovski in Belgrade four decades ago. The pair have stayed in touch over the years and were reunited last week courtesy of Nagoya Grampus.

The fact-finding trip proved a valuable insight into how Stojkovic - one of the greatest strikers of the modern generation for Yugoslavia, Red Star and in the J-League – prepares his teams. A quick scan on YouTube confirms Stojkovic’s superstar status and the scorer of amazing long-range goals.

And with Nagoya highly likely to end up in the Asian Champions League – they currently sit second, a point behind leader Shimizu S-Pulse - it’s possible Sydney FC or Melbourne Victory could draw Stojkovic’s men in next year’s ACL.

But the Aussie connection doesn’t end there. A new-look Josh Kennedy – minus the Jesus hair – was on hand to welcome Radovic.

And Djurovski is set to visit Australia and watch some A-League games later this year during the Japanese off-season.

Radovic, a former Red Star Belgrade and Yugoslav U/21 European champion and UEFA ‘A’ licenced head coach at the Sydney Soccer Academy (www.soccersydney.com), spoke with Aidan Ormond …

Misha, what was the training base like at Nagoya?

Unbelievable. It’s located about 30 minutes from the centre of Nagoya. You’ve got two or three immaculate grounds, gyms, pool, and restaurant so when it’s a double session they obviously stay for lunch, and the administration centre is located at the same space as the training. It’s very professional.

Give us an insight into their training methods under Stojkovic...

I was so impressed. They have a coaching team of nine people with fitness coaches, video analysts and the like. Every day the main assistant coach Bosko Djurovski prepares the training, Stojkovic continues from that and he has the last word.

Every day they do something different, depending on the day of the week and if they have a midweek or Sunday game.

When I was there, they had a gap of six days so they made about five sessions. The first day was a little bit of passing, a quite light session; the next, a little fitness training but with an emphasis on measuring heart and pulse rates.

In the afternoons, they had five versus five games for greater intensity then a switch to eight versus eight and then ten versus ten with game play connected to positions on the park and tactical awareness.

Every individual knew what they needed to do and training was rarely interrupted by Stojkovic or Jurovski because they’ve been in the process for a long time those players.

The majority of the Japanese players speak English but there is a translator that Stojkovic uses – this translator was the same as Wenger used [when he coached the club in the mid-90s].

What is Stojkovic’s favoured formation?

It depends on the opponents. 4-3-3 or 4-4-1-1. What he says is football can really progress tactically now. He is capable of playing different formations.

Of course he has Josh so you want to ensure there are quality crosses for him but there are different types of combinations in the midfield, depending on the opposition. He employs a zone defence.

Managers must have that sense of putting the right players in the right combinations on the park – when you get that, you usually get results.

Stojkovic uses the latest technology and everything at his training has a purpose. It’s well planned. Maybe because it’s Japan, there’s no tension. It’s unreal, there’s such a great mood, everyone’s smiling. It’s really a bit unreal.

Stojkovic has meetings with the players before a game but they are just 15 minutes because they’ve already been drilled on all the tactical aspects.

And when the coaching team meet in Stojkovic’s office they are so respectful towards him. I was asked into those meetings which was a big honour.

How did Josh look and did you speak to him?

Yes, I spoke with him. He’s such a nice guy. I knew he was good in the air but seeing him, I can tell you he’s exceptional in the air. It’s not just because he’s tall it’s all about positioning too.

I spoke with Josh and from what he told he’d said he’d been in Germany for nine years and that was a big experience but he said he was really enjoying Japan and noted how respectful they are. And he’s very happy to be under Stojkovic who he respects very much.

I get the feeling he wouldn’t mind staying there but he said maybe he maybe made a wrong decision in staying in Germany for so long.

He’s hoping for a really good solution with a good coach now for the Socceroos.

Stojkovic said he doesn’t want Josh expending energy working away from the goal. He wants him to be fresh for when those crosses come in.

Seeing Stojkovic up close at work must have been a thrill?

It was. And they revere him over there. He has a street named after him. They named a stand at their home stadium after him and have a plaque dedicated to him at their training ground.

Internationally, he has such respect too. To give you an idea, Stojkovic was recently a guest at Chelsea of manager Carlo Ancelotti around April and he observed their training methods and he said they were almost identical to what he does at Nagoya.

When he was at Chelsea he was talking with Ancelotti and Lampard came over and asked him how he scored all those great goals, and he told him you have to practice [head to YouTube to see Stojkovic in his prime)

You have to remember that Stojkovic’s mentor was Arsene Wenger and he was guest at Arsenal also recently.

Roy Hodgson has also been in touch with Stojkovic about a few things so he’s so well respected. But as a coach, he uses the latest methods.

He’s a modern coach, he’s not based on the old ideas of endless running for nothing or screaming at the players. Everything’s got a purpose.