Croatians Around Europe

Alright, here we go! The Champions League quarterfinals kick off tonight with Leg 1. There are three Croatians (2 players) left in the tournament. Luka Modrić has been given the nod and will start vs. Arsenal in North London Tuesday night. He started at the weekend and plated 77 minutes in a shock Real Madrid loss to Valencia. The dude is 39 and playing two huge games in a … [Read more...] about Champions League Quarterfinals: 1st Leg

Ivan Perišić strikes again! The 36 year-old winger scored from an incredibly tight angle with his head Saturday in PSV Eindhoven's 3-1 victory over Groningen. Perišićm now has 3G/7A in 22 Dutch League hames for PSV this season. Not to mention, Perišić scored three Champions League goals in four matches this season. The guy is heating up for one last run with the Croatian … [Read more...] about Croatians Around Europe 28: Perišić, Ivanović Remain Hot With Goals

Pep started Joško Gvardiol at center-back (alongside Ruben Dias) Wednesday night in Manchester City's 2-0 victory over Leicester City. Does that mean Gvardiol will permanently move from LB to CB? Does it mean Dalić will follow suit in World Cup qualifying this year? Who knows. It's definitely too early to tell. But here is what the pundits had to say about Gvardiol's move back … [Read more...] about Pep Moves Gvardiol Back To CB

Franjo Ivanović scored two goals for USG on Saturday in a 5-1 win over Royal Antwerp. He received a 9.0 rating and MOTM honors. Ivanović made his international debut for Croatia this past week against France. Although he skied his penalty kick shot into the 14th row, he has been nothing but stellar in the Belgian league this year: 13G6A in 25 matches. Surely he will be moving … [Read more...] about Croatians Around Europe 27: Ivanović Scores 2 More, Hajduk Back On Top Of The HNL

Ante Budimir converted a penalty Sunday night for his 15th La Liga goal of the season in 27 matches played. Of the 15 goals this campaign, seven have come from the penalty spot. Moving forward, should Budimir be Croatia's #1 spot kick taker? In my opinion, Modrić has always been shaky from 11 meters out. Budimir should have done better with a 2nd half chance late in the game as … [Read more...] about Croatians Around Europe 26: Budimir Scores #15, Stanišić Assists For Bayern, Perišić With G/A

Perišić scored against Arsenal Wednesday night which means he now has 3 goals in his last 4 Champions League matches. Two vs. Juventus and one vs. Arsenal. Although PSV's European season is over as Arsenal defeated them 9-3 on aggregate. Still pretty impressive numbers for a 36 year-old winger returning from knee surgery and an awful homecoming in Split. I wrote him off a year … [Read more...] about The Return Of Ivan Perišić!

Luka Modrić with another fine display Sunday as Real Madrid defeated Rayo Vallecano 2-1. Modrić played the full 90 minutes and was given MOTM honors from FOTMOB. Per ManagingMadrid, Modrić received an 8/10 rating as he had "Another age-less display with a team-high 4 key passes and a big chance create for Vinicius Junior, where the Brazilian lacked the finishing touch." The win … [Read more...] about Croatians Around Europe 25: Modrić, Vušković Shine In Stellar Performances; Ivanović Remains On Fire

Ante Budimir became Osasuna's all-time leading scorer Sunday when he converted a 1st half penalty vs. Valencia. Budimir would also be credited with an assist int he 3-3 draw. He has now scored 57 La Liga goals for Osasuna since coming over from Mallorca in 2020. This season, Budimir has bagged 14 goals and two assists in 26 matches. He currently sits behind only Lewandowski … [Read more...] about Croatians Around Europe 24: Budmir Scores, Assists vs. Valencia