The Croatia ‘Z Squad’ arrived in Los Angeles Tuesday afternoon and held a light practice in front of their friendly with Mexico at the Los Angeles Coliseum on Saturday, May 27th. As noted earlier in the week, none of Croatia’s big name players made the trip as they still have games left in their European season with their respective clubs.
Manager Ante Cačić nearly called off the one-hour ‘jog and stretch’ training but wanted his players to get out of the hotel after an 11-hour flight from Frankfurt. When asked about the status of Dejan Lovren and Alen Halilović, Cačić said that Lovren is with Liverpool in Australia for an international friendly while Halilović did not have enough playing time in the past season to deserve a call-up.
The match with Mexico kicks of at 4:30PM Saturday with a Fan Zone starting at the Coliseum at 1PM.
@Anon- No replacement for good hustle & anticipation.
I didn’t get to watch Halil in any games this year, but looking at the Las Palma’s results since his arrival, I would venture to say it wouldn’t be a stretch to pick Tudor over Halil.
Tudor with great anticipation. He read the pass back and started running from midfield before the Mexican player even had the ball to pass it back. Great hustle on the first goal as well for the assist. This kid is better than Halilovic. Hard worker and hustler and his first goal took a lot of skill from that angle.
Mexico Goal. Kalinic misread the cross but Jedvaj let his mark get away for a free header.
@BZ – I know you’re joking but I really thought we were going to lose 2, 3-0 when I read the lineups. How wrong I was. I am glad I was wrong too.
@croatiansports-too busy partying with Cacic & Suker that you forgot to post a result? Jk
@all- Mandzukic got injured & might not play vs Real Madrid. That would be a damper on this fun day.
@Soul Champ- lol, so true about 16 players with 6 subs. Like Iggy says, with that moustache you can be a badass like that.
It is all good, that was a fun win after the Estonia debacle.
Note: I would rather be a jocksniffer, than a Mexican fan cheering puto, while being down 2-0 against a bunch of “D” team players.
@Soul Champ – Kalinic looked good but that Mexico goal was his fault 100%. It was in the box and and he clearly jumped and missed it. Aside from that he did well, I don’t want to only focus on the negatives. I don’t think too many people here thought we were even going to compete let alone win. First half looked better than the first. In all fairness we scored off two Mexico screw ups and then played bunker especially after the red card. I thought maybe the ref wash harsh with the first Skoric yellow card (who ever starts wasting time in the 60th minute? – that’s pretty early) but then again each ref is different so my opinion doesn’t matter, just an obersvation. At the end of the day we should be proud. I’m sure those players knew many Croat fans wrote them off and expected them to lose by a few. Good result. Good for NT confidence. Let’s all not argue for once and be happy. Sometimes you can play better than another team and screw up once and the other team capitalizes and you lose. Glad they were able to capitalize on those 2, maybe 1 error (the first goal Mexico fell asleep and we pounced) and we were able to actually play bunker and hold off the other team’s attack, down a man for 15 minutes vs Mexico in LA (basically a home game for them) with mostly HNL players. That’s a big statement. It’s one game but I’ll take it. The late header was directly at Kalinic but even so it was a good point blank save. Good prospect moving forward. More Croats there than I thought. On to Iceland. ZDS.
@ BZ
Čačić and his subs block ?
At least he lines them well to start.
How about allowed 6 subs but only bring 16 players ?
All good.
Tudor made a name for himself.
Ivan “not so great?” Santini.
Jedvaj hasn’t run that well in 2 years !
Vlašić competed.
Kalinic was the man in goal.
He is mobile.
We are good for goalie for the next 8 years !
You’re an honest man, Idemo.
Beautiful result!
@Laknat
you are the piece of shit, we won you moron, we dont need your halilovic lol
@Iggy, you also are an idiot, 3-0, hey, LMFAO
@Laknat
you are the piece of shit, we won you moron, we dont need your halilovic lol
@Iggy, you also are an idiot, 3-0, hey, LMFAO
I wish they hadn’t bunkered so much in the 2nd, bc the 1st half performance was really impressive. Gotta love that Mexico started putting on the big boys after going down 2-0 yet still could not turn it around.
Jedvaj looked like the composed veteran out there.
Just caught the latter part of the second half.
Mexico was trying hard to not lose this game. It was pretty much a home game for them. They had Javier Hernandez and pretty much their A team out there in that second half.
Nice to see our HNL players hold them off, even when reduced to 10 players. These weren’t even our best HNL players really, lol.
@Soul Champ -nice one…but are you not a bit concerned about Cacic not subbing Skoric when:
A) skoric on a yellow
B) have 6 subs
C) knew we would park the bus and play D all game
Man they are going to party in San Pedro tonight!
Lmfao … “friendly?”
Mexican Coach ejected.
BS handshake at the end by Mexican manager.
Captain bugging out on the kid who got beaned in the head with a free kick.
Soccer is a religion in Mexico.
That coach is going to get roasted in the press.
Ireland in NY this Thursday.
Tartan army will be in full effect.
That may be even “friendlier” than this one was.
Time to focus on the Vikings on their island !
U boj
Nemamo muchos problemus. I told you fellas we deep and strong. We ok. Don’t fret. Iceland victory is necessary. Future is bright. Don’t start trolling troll.
@Idemo- good on you for owning up to it.
@CS Nation
Our “D” team just beat Mexico’s B team (1st half) B+ team (after subs). That was fun, because now Mexico will be going thru coaching controversies etc. Not going to help them for ’18
“Z” squad … stands for …
Za Dom Spremni !!!
Čačić freed up to line them up without any ego stroking issues.
Is Lovre Kalinic better than Subasic ?
2 meters and agile ?
Someone is going to snap him up from Ghent.
I owe u some money poglavnik didn’t even watch had practice but I see it’s 2-1
Red card on Cacic, to be honest.
Jedvaj with the save
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pul7nhRJYWI
watching for HD version,
btw Filipovic really piece of shit
the picked player from China Cup fucking junk!
Cacic, doesn’t know what sub means lol..
Looks like we got ourselves another quality winger in Fran Tudor
Let’s see if Cacic saves all 6 subs for the 89th minutes…
Cacic, is the best coach we have had thus far!
All these brain surgeons and doctors we have , fucking experts on everything , 2 0 , so far!!. Lmao. I love it. Why’d this guy play, why this , why that?. 4 million coaches . It’s ok for everyone else to make money , but when Hrvati do it , it’s somehow wrong or something, give me a fucking break.
Does anyone have a link that works to the game. Somehow can’t seem to get link from first down.com working?
Tudor the star on both goals. Credit where credit is due.
Why isn’t Čop playing for Real Madrid???!!!
okay im eating my words
cant believe we’re winning 2-0
lmao
Puto! Double Puto!!
Vlasic playing really well, but slow.
Jakov Filipovič best player so far for Cro…..who is he?
Not much service for Santini…..
Croatia playing well!
Jedvaj best player on field for us.
Santini too slow, not our future imo.
And how exactly does ‘Merica handle vandalism?
I hope the “PUTO!” chants overshadow anything we might do.
I’d also be very surprised if any contingent of anti HNS “supporters” makes this trip.
it;s garbage but, for anyone who cares
im watching it here
http://firstrowi.com/soccer/mexico-vs-croatia-frs160812?l=1022557166
Čop is captain? OMG
Mexico scoring chance first minute
Mexico dominating early
Boy I hope some moron fan:
1)throws a flare
2)draws a swastika on pitch
…so fifa will see how we handle vandalism in America. Not fifa’s job to punish non-perpetrators for something they did not do.
Dopes on fox not really making it clear these are scrubs. They make it seem like these guys are our future.
rolf
“they play professionally, it’s a young team”
rofl the commentators are great, trying to make it an actual matvh
I think Croatia does well. Don’t be surprised. We have good players top to bottom. In our blood.
I predict 4-1 for the Mexicans, i feel for the perps who payed money for this game.
Why does Čop always get the call up for the NT. He is complete govno.
@Armada
Forza Fiume !
Karolina party was down the block from my apartment.
I hope they pour that money into building the best youth academy.
Congrats Rijeka fans!
Particularly you Armada.
Success today is not winning the game. Success will be if we have a number of bright performances. Maybe a few guys show that they should be called up for the run in over the next 2 years. I’m hoping we see a good effort since it’s a big opportunity for many of the players.
Of course it’s always good to win, but the score line is meaningless.
AJME MENI JA SAMEARMADAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAA
The Prva Liga title is officially in the Kvarner!
Pulusic wins a pen
Does that mean your odds have dropped? 😉
Rebic just scored in German cup final 1-1 may be eating my words here soon lol
Just realized the hombres play the gueros next week so doubt they will play a full team either
I would take 20/1 odds on that any day!
I’ll give you 20 to 1 on that score line
My homer pick of the day says a 2-1 upset for the good guys!
Santini and Jedvaj with the goals.
Pretty much the only 2 Hrvati I can think of that are playing in this thing..
LAknat, pulling a Ziva!? Root for short term pain (5-0 loss) for long term gain! What say you CS nation?
5-0 could be better, we demand every single entity of talent around Europe to be picked up, stupid Cacic with the lacking guts for picking up players should have gone!
im predicting a 3-0 loss for us, sorry to say
Hope we represent ourselves well no matter tje players. U boj!
https://youtu.be/bb6KcKaRjlc
Muslim-Croatian?
These games mean nothing on the field. It is just a cash cow for the HNS and Mexican federation. The same thing as teh China adventure with our Y team earlier this year.
These kind of games a perfect for players like Santini. payed his dues and gets a chance, who know he might became a Dado Prso and peak for 2-3 years in his 30’s
http://www.thereligionofpeace.com/pages/quran/violence.aspx
if Cacic deluded himself because of this article then every single Muslim-Croatian won’t have a chance as a part of NT
@Maminjo
Livno made a good comment in a previous post. Apparently because it’s a non-Fifa sanctioned friendly clubs do not have to release their players. I don’t know how much of a role that plays but it I think it’s true.
Instead ‘the brand’ is reportedly in Vegas, kocka kurve i koka- Hard Rock room 337 hahahaha Old habits die hard, no surprises here.
@ Maminjo
Not sure how many of that group were available?
But I am with you on giving a call up to a few of those young prospects fighting for their careers in top leagues.
@ Poglavnik
Indeed Halilovic Sr has warn out his welcome in many a place.
But that Mamić exploitation is a challenge to navigate.
@ Svima
I appreciate the “progress” of having the repka in the US.
But this way is so corny that it unfortunately brings up the Balkan disfunctionality that has plagued our nation and our Savez.
You play a top team like Mexico on May 27? Non FIFA date?
In their backyard ?
Listen, I am watching and will root for Santini who could have a coming out party.
Maybe a kid or two from HNL shines as well?
After seeing Marko Pjaca tear his knee up playing at Estonia ?
I question the need for any BS friendlies?
Focus young talent on youth tournaments.
U17 was a debacle.
A real head of Savez would have taken that opportunity and focused all his preparation on ensuring a successful result.
Uvijek vjerni
This is a joke trust me mexico will kill this croatia team HNS pederi
http://blankmediagames.com/TownOfSalem/
let’s have a party on this game guys. …
we can play together before our match begin.
Sup fuckos
I was cruising around playing Pokemon Go the other day, you know, greatest game ever, and to my surprise – guess who i came across?
http://i67.tinypic.com/21m87rm.jpg
I think the mystery of where Ziva has disappeared to is over fellas, clearly he’s transitioned ala Chelsea Manning and is busily playing Poke-go !
😉
I agree with Cacic’s decision not to call up any A squad players for this stupid friendly, but I don’t understand what’s with a the D-level talent?
Why not call up players like Posavec, Caleta-Car, Brekalo, Coric, Halilovic, Simunovic, Perica and Rebic?
These guys aren’t even going to be on the bench for Iceland, and I would assume that they are a part of our future. Almost all of them play in decent leagues and actually play regular minutes for their squads.
There are even some dual nationals in Anto Grgic, Fabian Benko, and maybe even Adrien Thomasson that we could have introduced into the squad and potentially capped in a future qualifier.
Grgic was just called up for Switzerland, so he’s likely gone. Benko plays for Bayern, so he’s at risk to be called up for a German friendly down the road as well.
Truth troll with his his 3rd grade name calling again.
I would have thought the bigger picture and most important is that the Croatian National team has come to the USA.
Surely we aren’t that wound up by results.
Also, not sure why ppl are surprised about the line up. It was always going to happen.
I say embrace it and enjoy.
Ahh yes now i just read. Me first kramaric is unable to play for the national team because of the injuries that he has been able to play with with hoffenheim during the whole season. Instead of working on recovery, he is out partying and taking shirtless pictures in ibiza. I tried to tell you guys this guy was a me first guy. Once again, the truth is revealed.
Ahhh ok. I must’ve missed that. I’m glad to see santini given the chance rather than some of these overhyped youth. It’s crazy to think of how much this guy has done to get a call up vs some of those kids.
Halilovic
Pjaca
Coric
Rog
Radosevic
I mean, we could probably go on and on
Many who can read Croatian newspapers, had already seen Santini was called up for Iceland too. This was released the same day as the Mexico game. Sad to see Kramaric’s injury was bigger than we knew, hence Santini’s opportunity.
https://pbs.twimg.com/media/DAbalaFXUAEq3Kw.png:large
https://twitter.com/HNS_CFF?ref_src=twsrc%5Egoogle%7Ctwcamp%5Eserp%7Ctwgr%5Eauthor
I use stari for my own.
He’s still a kid so i think tata works.
Tata Babo caca
@Poglavnik
You used the word “tata”, given the context I think the word “babo” is a better fit.
Beat it the troll
So, i was reading the Croatian paper today (which most on this site obviously can’t do) and came across a santini interview. In it, he says he couldn’t believe he was called up for the Iceland game. Do you think…
1) the paper misprinted Iceland for Mexico
2) santini has already been called up for Iceland (did anyone see a player list for this yet?)
3) santini doesn’t realize than being called up for the first time for a real qualifying game, he has simply been called to fill in with the z team?
@Soul Champ
Agreed.
I don’t get why he’s not in the squad either.
Him and or his tata must have rubbed some people the wrong way. Hopefully they can build a bridge and get over it.
@ Poglavnik
Valid point.
But the kid is good enough for this “field trip to LA” team.
My feeling is give the kid a chance.
In particular he would be added value with his attack dribble skills.
Actually see some talent amungst the CS all-stars.
U boj …
Huge fan of santini ever since his zadar days. If Benko and other randoms were able to get a call up i always knew that there was a good chance santini would get a cap.
Looking forward to seeing tudor and vlasic, but why the hell is nizic in the squad?
Podolski and Klose were proven “professionals.”
Halilovic has the reputation of a spoiled punk.
Big difference.
What country do you think this team is comparable?. Could it compete with Azerbaijan?
In my eyes, indisposed
In disguises no one knows
Hides the face, lies the snake
The sun in my disgrace
Boiling heat, summer stench
‘Neath the black the sky looks dead
Call my name through the cream
And I’ll hear you scream again
Black hole sun
Won’t you come
And wash away the rain
Black hole sun
Won’t you come
Won’t you come (won’t you come)
Stuttering, cold and damp
Steal the warm wind tired friend
Times are gone for honest men
And sometimes far too long for snakes
In my shoes, a walking sleep
And my youth I pray to keep
Heaven sent hell away
No one sings like you anymore
Black hole sun
Won’t you come
And wash away the rain
Black hole sun
Won’t you come
Won’t you come
Black hole sun
Won’t you come
And wash away the rain
Black hole sun
Won’t you come
I dont know how I feel about this friendly…
1. I’d be surpised if we win because of the lack of talent.
2. Maybe its good that there is a lack of talent because there is no use anyone getting injured over a friendly.
3. Ultimately we have nothing to lose because its not an accurate representation of the team …but at least we get to see what the ‘Z squad’ is made of lol
respect for cacic. At the end of the day he has to make the trip, do his work get the players ready for a difficult game representing Croatia. Of course he would prefer to put a team out which would represent the best of his ideas as a coach, instead he is acting almost as a development coach in this situation. so well done Cacic
Yes
Boy Mene
God Bless Čačić as he is doing a good job.
But in the box thinking with the Halilovic snub!
The kid is struggling in his career.
He would have been great against Mexico.
Germany held down Podolski and Klose during tough times.
Šuker couldn’t run a hot dog stand in Central Park.
I sat with him on a flight from Zagreb to Frankfurt.
He is running a multi million dollar HNS?
Budala
On a positive note I’d like to see Ivan “the great” Santini.
Was is “Mr. Black” who has been posting about him for years in Belgium ?
This is his shot to shine.
I hope he brings the physicality necessary to deal with Mexico.
@ American Hrvati
It has been tough to deal with these Mexican beat downs that we have received over the years.
Hopefully in 2018 at the World Cup (you know we will meet them again) we can finally return the favor.