The list of European football's serial domestic champions includes more than just household names like Juventus, Real Madrid, Barcelona, Bayern Munich and Lyon. A trio comprising NK Olimpia Ljubljana, ND Gorica and NK Maribor have maintained an exclusive grip on the Slovenian title since the PrvaLiga Telekom Slovenije was established as the newly independent nation's top flight in 1991-2. From 1920 until independence, the Slovenian league ranked as a regional section of the Yugoslav championship.
Ljubljana secured the crown in the new league's first four seasons, before Gorica claimed a debut trophy in 1996. Maribor then rattled up seven triumphs on the bounce, with Gorica returning to the top of the pile in each of the last three seasons.
However, 15 years of dominance by the all-conquering trio are poised to end this term. NK Domzale hold a commanding lead at the top of the standings and look a near certain bet to claim a debut Slovenian championship. Based in a town of 12,000 on the outskirts of capital city Ljubljana, Domzale remain undefeated after 23 matches and hold a whopping 17-point advantage over nearest rivals Maribor, with reigning champions Gorica a further two points adrift. With 13 games to play, a calamity of unimaginable proportions would have to befall the leaders to prevent them claiming the crown.
Winning the title would represent the greatest triumph in the history of the club, runners-up for the last two seasons. Founded in 1921 as DISK Domzale and renamed in 1935 to the current Nogometni Klub Domzale, NK were among the 21 founding members of the first Slovenian league after the collapse of the former Yugoslavia, although the opening campaign ended in relegation after the club finished third from bottom.
Domzale won promotion back to the top flight in 1997-8, but reached a nadir in 2001-2 when they finished bottom and resumed life in the second tier. That disappointment marked the beginning of a remarkable success story, starting with immediate promotion back to the top flight as second division champions. A comfortable season of consolidation followed, before they recorded their second-place finishes of 2004-05 and 2005-06. The rapid ascent now looks set to culminate in title glory.
Perfect blend
The man heralded by all and sundry as the architect of the club's success is coach Slavisa Stojanovic, still just 37 years of age and a new arrival at the helm in summer 2003. Imports such as the Brazilian Juninho and Murilo Maccari from Italy remain rare exceptions in a squad brim full of young Slovenians. Stojanovic's success with a host of talented youngsters has even earned Domzale a local reputation as 'little Ajax', in a nod to the Amsterdam outfit's legendary youth academy.
The winning blend is rounded out by a dash of experience provided by the likes of much-travelled striker Sebastjan Cimirotic, formerly with a number of overseas clubs including US Lecce and Hajduk Split and a member of the Slovenia squad at the 2002 FIFA World Cup Korea/Japan™.
Since arriving at the beginning of the season, the 32-year-old has emerged as a real ace in the Domzale pack and has contributed nine vital goals to NK's imperious march on the title. Fellow Slovenia international and strike partner Ermin Rakovic has amassed an impressive 13 goals so far, inevitably attracting admiring gazes from a posse of foreign clubs. At the back, keeper Janez Strajnar and a defensive line built around Janez Aljancic and Ivan Knezovic have conceded a miserly 17 goals against this term.
With one hand firmly on the championship trophy, NK can legitimately begin dreaming of the elite international stage, as winning the national title brings with it a place in the UEFA Champions League qualifying rounds. The Slovene cracks have already proved their worth in Europe with a run to the first round proper of last season's UEFA Cup, where they fell to a narrow 2-1 aggregate defeat against Bundesliga giants VfB Stuttgart. The footballing world could soon be hearing a lot more of Slavisa Stojanovic and his team.