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The challenge of crossing 2018 in front of Croatia

Sarah Almas: The population of the country named Croatia is less than 4 million. 128th country in the world in terms of population. But they are among the best countries in terms of football power. Who made it to the finals of the World Cup held in Russia in 2018. Although it was very close, the World Cup trophy was not seen in the end. However, Croatia has proved that they are not behind in football ability.

Football history of Croatia:

Croatia was born as an independent country in 1991. Finally got independence from Yugoslavia. Before that, Croatia was part of Austria and Hungary. In fact, Croatia has existed in some form since the time of the Roman Empire. Let’s take the case of the Croatian Football Federation. It was established in June 1912. But their independent existence was revealed only after separation from Yugoslavia.

History says that Croatia played for the first time in 1940 against Switzerland. The hosts won the match in Zagreb 4-0. Florijan Matekalo scored the first goal of the game. He is recognized as Croatia’s first international goal scorer.

And the first international football match of modern Croatia in October 1990. The opponent is the United States. It was also held in the capital Zagreb. Croatia won the match 2-1. Aljoša Asanović scored the first goal in the 26th minute of the match. Croatia still did not get membership of FIFA.
And independent Croatia played its first match as a FIFA member in July 1992. However, Croatia lost the Melbourne match 0-1. This is Croatia’s first international match sanctioned by FIFA.

Surprise at the beginning:

Croatia could not participate in the 1994 World Cup qualifiers. However, after qualifying in 1998, he entered the main stage of the World Cup. Despite being a new team, Croatia had several players who had the experience of participating in the World Cup. One of whom is Robert Prosinečki. Who played in the World Cup held in Italy in 1990 for Yugoslavia. He won the best emerging star award of the event.
However, Croatia’s participation in the first World Cup was shocking. They surpassed the achievements of Croatia’s predecessor, Yugoslavia. Yugoslavia finished fourth in the World Cup in 1930 and 1962. But Croatia, separated from them, got the third place in the World Cup debut. In the quarter-finals of the season, Croatia defeated the Germans 3-0. However, Lilian Thuram’s two goals in the semis lost to the host France. Who later won the title. In the end, Croatia won the third place of the tournament after defeating Holland.

In 1998, Croatia faced Jamaica in the first match of the group stage. Croatia won the match 3-1. Mario Stanic scored in the 27th minute of the match to become the first Croatian World Cup goal scorer. In addition, Davor Suker won the award for the best scorer of the season by scoring 6 goals.

After the 2002 and 2006 World Cups, Croatia did not get a chance to play in the 2010 World Cup. He returned again in 2014 at the World Cup in Brazil. However, the Croats left the group stage in these three events.

Unforgettable achievements of the 2018 World Cup:

Croatia’s success in the World Cup in Russia was eye-catching. Before the start of the World Cup, no one could have imagined that the team would reach the final. But Croatia showed that in the field game. In the group stage, Argentina, Nigeria and Iceland got the top spot. Defeated all three opponents. Lionel Messi’s Argentina was blown away by Croatia 3-0. Knock out and defeat Denmark and Russia in the quarter finals, however, had to go to the tiebreaker. One of the favorites England lost to them in the semis. However, in the final against France, 2-4 was a helpless surrender of Croatia. But even then their performance in the whole event was incredible.

Ivan Perisic scored three goals in the tournament. But the main hero was captain Luka Modric. He won the “Golden Ball” of the World Cup.

Croatia has played 23 matches in five World Cups so far and won 11. 4 draws and 8 losses. Scored 35 goals and scored 26 goals. Dario Simic and Luka Modric have played three World Cups for Croatia. Simic was in Croatia’s squad for three consecutive World Cups 1998-2006. On the other hand, Modric played in 2006, 2010 and 2018 World Cups. If he lands in Qatar, he will make the record of playing the maximum four World Cup games for the country. Besides, he also holds the record of playing the most 12 matches in the World Cup.

Davor Suker has scored the most six goals for Croatia in World Cup football. Ivan Parisic scored five goals. In front of him is the opportunity to break the record of Suker. Parisic will play the third World Cup of his career.

The best football player in the history of Croatia:

Davor Suker has the record of 45 goals for his country. Played 69 international matches. In 1998 World Cup he won the ‘Golden-Boot’ and also the ‘Silver-Ball’ for the second best player. He has won his country’s best of the year six times, including five in a row. In 1998, he was second in the Ballon and third in the FIFA Player of the Year. He has 240 goals in 527 matches in club football. Played in big teams like Real Madrid, Arsenal. He won the Champions League for Real. Undoubtedly, he is one of the most successful footballers in the history of Croatia.

Zvonimir Boban was the captain of the Croatia team in the 1998 World Cup. He also scored 1 goal in 7 matches for the Yugoslavia team. And the owner of 12 goals in 49 matches in Croatia jersey. Played in clubs like AC Milan, Dinamo Zagreb and Celta Vigo. He won the Champions League and the UEFA Super Cup for AC Milan. Known as a skilled midfield player, Boban has won his country’s best player of the year twice.

Robert Prosinečki hit the ground running as a midfield player in the 1990s. He played for Yugoslavia in the 1990 World Cup. He has 4 goals in 14 matches for his former country. After independence, he joined the national team of Croatia. Where he scored 10 goals in 49 matches. Prosinečki who is in the total team of Sevilla and Barcelona, ​​also played for Portsmouth in the English league. In 1987, he won the Under-20 World Cup for Yugoslavia. He received the ‘Golden Ball’ as the best player of that season. He was the best of the year in both Croatia and Yugoslavia. Which is a rare occurrence.

Who knows if Ivan Rakitic can be put on the list of former players! Because he suddenly retired from international football in September 2020. But still playing in the Spanish league for Sevier. He scored 15 goals in 106 matches in the national team jersey. Although this footballer is 34 years old and has played six seasons in Barcelona, ​​he is fully active on the field. If he had not retired, he would have been seen in the 2022 World Cup. His contribution to Croatia’s success in 2018 was no less than that of Modric. In 2015, he received the honor of the best footballer in Croatia.

Besides, Croatia’s Dario Simic, Darijo Srna, Niko Kovach, Ivan Olic should also be kept in the ranks of the best of the golden days.

Road to Qatar:

Croatia has directly qualified for the World Cup from Europe’s ‘H’ group. Their points were 23 in 10 matches. Russia also had a great fight and got 22 points in the same match. However, despite being second in the group, Russia could not play in the playoffs. Because of the FIFA ban due to the Ukraine attack.

Croatia started with a 0-1 defeat against Slovenia in the World Cup qualifiers. Although later, the leg did not hurt. In the end, they made their name in the World Cup with seven wins and two draws. The other three teams in the group were Slovakia, Cyprus and Malta.

Luka Modric, Mario Pasalic and Ivan Parisic scored three goals each in the qualifiers.

Recent Performance:

Croatia has entered the UEFA Nations League semi-finals of the 2022-23 season. Left behind the last World Cup champion France, former Euro champion Denmark and Austria. They had 13 points in 6 matches with 4 wins, 1 draw and 1 loss. They are behind the Danes who got 12 points and they are going to fight to reach the final next year. Like the World Cup qualifiers, Croatia started the Nations Cup with a 0-3 loss to Austria. But in the end, Croatia showed their ability to make it to the semis.

Besides, Croatia played two friendly matches at the beginning of the year. Where they drew 1-1 with Slovenia but lost to Bulgaria 2-1.

Luka Modric is in the team of Croatia:

Luka Modric is undoubtedly one of the best midfielders in the world today and Croatia’s best ever. As the only footballer from Croatia, he won the FIFA World Player of the Year, Ballon d’Or and FIFA World Cup Golden-Ball. Under his leadership, Croatia reached the final of the 2018 World Cup and saw the best success in history. Since 2006, he has played a maximum of 154 matches for the national team. Qatar is going to play the fourth most World Cup single for the country. The number of goals for the country is 23. In 2022, he appeared in eight matches for Croatia, scoring three goals.

In club football, he has played in Dinamo Zagreb of his country, Tottenham in England and has been in the world’s best club Real Madrid since the 2012-13 season. He has already played 452 matches for Real. Scored 35 goals. In this season, he has played 16 matches till October, scoring four goals. He won five Champions Leagues for Real. The number of titles in the club career is 27.

37-year-old Modric is still one of the hopes of the club and the national team. Qatar World Cup is definitely going to be the end of Modric’s career. Do your best to make it memorable, no doubt.

Without Modric, Ivan Perisic has a record of 32 goals in 115 matches in Croatia’s current team. Apart from this, Mario Mandzukic, the second highest scorer of 33 goals for the country, Domagoj Vida, who has played 99 matches, Mario Kovacic, who has played 83 matches and Dehan Lovren, who has played 71 matches, are in the team. Among the newcomers, Josip Juranovic, Mario Pasalic, Nikola Vlasic are going to Qatar with the trust of the team.

Group Phase and Objectives:

In the ‘F’ group of the World Cup, Croatia’s opponents are Belgium, Morocco and Canada. Croatia’s World Cup campaign begins with a match against Morocco on November 23. The two teams met in a single international match in Egypt in 1996. Croatia had to win the game in a tiebreaker.

On November 27, Croatia’s opponent is Canada. The first meeting of which is going to be in the World Cup.

Croatia’s match against Belgium is on December 1. The statistics of the two teams are equal. Eight shows two teams win three, draw two. However, after 2010, Croatia never won with Belgium. Lost the last two matches.

Considering the group, Belgium and Croatia are the favorites to go to the knock out phase. In terms of FIFA rankings, recent performance and team strength, neither Canada nor Morocco compare. However, nothing is certain in the World Cup. Accidents can happen at any time. Keeping that in mind, one can be optimistic about Croatia’s best sixteen game.

Coach and Tactics:

Zlatko Dalic has been the coach of Croatia since 2017. Luka Modric and Co. played in the 2018 World Cup finals under him. He will also guide the team in the upcoming World Cup. Under him, Croatia have won 31 out of 62 matches so far. Remaining 14 draws and 17 losses.

Qatar World Cup qualifiers Peru and 2022-23 Nations League semi-finalists Croatia will be seen in the World Cup organized. Coach Dalic has an excellent midfield with Modric, Kovacic and Marcelo Brohovic to contend with. Even without last season’s Ivan Rakitic, that lack will not be felt in this midfield. The team’s defense is also strong. However, there is some deficiency in the forward line. An attacking midfield capable of providing that.

4-3-3 formation Dalic could play in Qatar World Cup starting XI – Dominik Livakovic (goalkeeper), Jošip Juranović, Dejan Lovren, Josko Guardiol, Varna Sosa, Marcelo Brohović, Luka Modric, Mateo Kovacic, Mario Pasalic, Andrej Kramaric, Ivan Perisic.

World Cup Squad:

Croatia’s 26-man squad will feature-

Goalkeepers – Dominik Livakovic, Lovre Kalinić, Ivica Ivušić

Defence: Josip Stanisic, Borna Barisic, Martin Erlichman, Dejan Lovren, Borna Sosa, Josko Guardiol, Domagoj Vida, Josip Juranovic, Duje Ćaleta-Car

Midfield – Lovro Mayer, Mateo Kovacic, Luka Sucic, Luka Modric, Marcelo Brozović, Nikola Vlasic, Mario Pasalic, Ivan Perisic

Forwards: Andrej Kramaric, Marko Livaja, Bruno Petkovic, Ante Budimir, Mislav Orsic, Josip Brekalo

Conclusion:

Croatia needs to win the World Cup trophy to surpass past success. This pressure will definitely be on the team. Moreover, Luka Modric has become old. He is still the driving force of the team. Compared to that, Croatia has fewer world-class stars. And the success of Croatia depends on how Modric will be in the best form. All in all, it is unlikely that Croatia will be able to repeat the success of 2018.

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