Croatia manager, Zlatko Dalić, has named the 23-man squad that will face the Netherlands in Rotterdam June 14th in the first UEFA Nations League semifinal. Spain will play Italy a day later in the second semifinal. The Final will be played June 18th.
No major changes to the squad from March’s two Euro 2024 qualifiers against Wales and Turkey. The only notable call-up from the preliminary squad who ws dropped is 21 year-old striker, Dion Drena Beljo, who has been hot for Bundesliga club Augsburg over the past month. Beljo has two goals and two assists to his name in his last five Bundesliga matches dating back to April 21st. However, instead of joining the senior side, Beljo will be part of the U21 squad, who kick off Euro 2023 June 21st against Ukraine.
The only other thing to mention regarding this squad is Marcelo Brozović’s late addition to the team. He of course will be part of this Croatian squad, but will join the team in Holland late as Inter Milan will be playing Manchester City June 10th in the Champions League Final in Turkey. Broz is not guaranteed to start for Inter in the Final which should keep him relatively fresh for the Dutch match. Broz did score the game winner this past weekend in Inter Milan’s final Serie A match of the season, beating Torino 1-0. Veterans Luka Modrić, Ivan Perišić, and Andrej Kramarić should all be at 100% rest when the semifinal kicks off.
With Livaja leaving the team, it means that we have only 22 players to choose from. You can only replace players on the list if someone gets injured.
Personally, I don’t think that we will miss him. His departure is probably permanent ? meaning that Dalic can start bringing in younger forwards into the squad. Going forward, this will cause problems with Hajduk and in particular with Torcida. I worry about future repka matches in Split and the trouble that could arise because of Livija’s departure.
I don’t think it’s permanent, but I hope so.
The sooner the better too because the next round of games are in September, and qualification will end in November already.
We’re pretty much going to know our Euro2024 starters within these next four months, and if guys like Beljo are still not being called up to play, then it’s likely they will have to wait even longer to be integrated into the team (unless we do a last minute knee-jerk move by giving him his first full cap him during the Euros like we did with Gvardiol, Juranovic and Ivanusec at Euro2020).
Blessing in disguise maybe
Take orsic
Beljo can come next time
You know dalic ain’t gonna give beljo any real mins
Orsic can turn the game around and go out with petko if needed some quick offence
Unless dalic wanted to start krama on the right side and livaja in middle
If you gonna be a hot head at least score goals and or try hard
Like a mandzo, and legendary Ibrahimovic
Are we even allowed to call up a replacement now?
Did any deadlines pass for this?
I don’t know
I rely on you for info maminjo;)
Krama is licking his chops right now….
take my comment out of moderation
If any of you follow the Croatian League (HNL) you all probably saw this coming.
After Hajduk beat Sibenik, Livaja took a loudspeaker and started running around singing “Freze, traktori i seoski putevi, pičke šibenske, pičke šibenske, dobit ćete batine”
I mean, what do you expect from people outside of Split to think about him. You act like an idiot and you’ll be treated like one.
all those Livaja apologists and Kalinic apologists are most likely gonna start sabotaging the HNS again and we might end up seeing Torcida trying to make us lose points, pay fines….all the same crap they did not long ago!
Livaja is and always will be a complete idiot! Club over country!
Yea I remember the Sibenik incident.
I didn’t think this was related, but it makes complete sense if he suddenly excused himself from the team for it.
Dalic is really big on trying to unite Croatian fans, so he probably suggested to Livaja that he take a short break until the dust settles.
Dalic has been bending over backwards to get Torcida back into supporting the National Team (we almost lost qualifying points because of it) and Livaja could have singlehandedly ended all that progress.
I’m reading through social media and this is all happening again. Soo many Torcidasi on Livaja’s side regardless of him being an idiot. I suggested those of you that haven’t seen him going around the field with the loudspeaker in Rijeka screaming out “ , pičke šibenske, pičke šibenske, dobit ćete batine” and then jumping up on the fence and trying to intimidate an older fan that’s insulted Livaja…he’s just a bum in every sense of the word!
I support his play in the HNL and believe he deserves to be in the National Team but better and worse players have taken much more abuse and didn’t run up and confront the fan as if he got a slap in the face.
This will spark more swastika, more flares, more undermining the National Team…those Torcida goons aren’t logical, they’re all about Hajduk and nothing else.
One thing I just read. Nobody ever had left the National team like this and for this reason ever! What a shit show!
This is why you never pander to a group that victimizes itself.
Nothing is ever going to be good enough.
I hope Dalić learns a lesson too and doesn’t give in to any future Torcida demands.
Just play the game and don’t even factor these outside things. Livaja needs to be phased out moving forward. He’s a 30 year old bubble player with baggage.
How great would it have been right now to have Oršić on the squad.
He hit a kid with a ball. From a missed shot. Perhaps failed to apologize and then when criticized he probably said something stupid and it was blown out of proportion. He is know to be a hot head. Probably the true story isn’t coming out so there must have been something bad that was said. Onwards we go.
Yea just reading now. This all happened yesterday though, and that’s what the video is from. Dalic said it was no big deal and Livaja apologized to the kid and the family and it was all fine afterward.
But not sure what has happened since yesterday that made Livaja excuse himself from the team today.
I guess there’s a pattern emerging with controversy/conflict before a major competition. Nikola Kalinic in 2018, Ante Rebic in 2022, and now Livaja in 2023. I don’t really think he deserves to be punished in this case (unless there’s more to the story then we’re hearing). Those asshole fans should be banned from all future Repka games…you don’t come to watch our beloved Vatreni, and attempt to disrupt them and cause problems!
I don’t think there is any controversy here. Livaja made a decision that he thought would help the team and didn’t want to remain on the team if it would create issues for the team in general. No controversy really. The fans egged him on, but he should have been wiser not to respond the way that he did. Overall I think it’s unfortunate for him that it came to this. This should not be compared to Rebic or Kalinic it’s not even close given that he is making a decision for the team as a whole and not himself. That is an awkward comment from you I think Eric.
I guess we will see if Dalic can find a replacement.
Nice job turning your back on the repka, Marko!
Strange that he was so quick to excuse himself from the National Team.
It was a few hecklers in the stands that were quickly removed from the stadium.
Seems like it would not a big deal to just brush that off and keep practicing.
I wonder what the whole story is.
There has to be something more to this.
I think he was told to “step down” .
So does Dalic recall Beljo now that Livaja left?
Depends if his boss Dragan Skočić lets him
Lol boss Dragan Skočić.
No choice but to let Beljo participate in both NL and U21 Euro now 😉
if Dalic is going to play his most “in form” players then Ivanusec has to start…he’s been on fire the last 2 months.
Of course he cuts Beljo, lol.
Having no Orsic is gonna be a problem. We were pretty inept offensively at the World Cup, and things aren’t going to be better without Orsic off the bench. Adding in Musa doesn’t cover that gap.
We’re going to have to hope that we dominate that midfield, kill it defensively, and Livakovic is still in World Cup form.
Are we going to ride the hnl all stars till retirement??
———— NETHERLANDS ————
National League players level -o
this is the standard – not to divert.
World Class [Gold Type]
……………………………………..
Be Considered [Silver Type]
…………………………………………….
Decent Players [Bronze Type]
High Level –
Virgil van Dijk
Mid-level >
Matthijs de Ligt
Low level –
Wout Weghorst, Ryan Gravenberch
______________________________________| below list]
Be Considered as Decent Players –
Stefan de Vrij, Denzel Dumfries
Average players
Nathan Ake, Steven Bergwijn, Steven Berghuis, Jasper Cillessen
Davy Klaassen, Marten de Roon,
Not Impressive
Jurrien Timber, Cody Gakpo, Vincent Janssen, Brian Brobbey,
Devyne Rensch, Tyrell Malacia, Daley Blind, Kenneth Taylor,
Andries Noppert, Mark Flekken
————– CROATIA —————-
National League players level -o
this is the standard – not to divert.
World Class [Gold Type]
Luka Modric
Be Considered [Silver Type]
…………………………………………….
Decent Players [Bronze Type]
High Level –
………………………………………….
Mid-level >
Perisic, Brozovic
Low level –
Gvardiol, Kovacic
______________________________________| below list]
Be Considered as Decent Players –
…………………………………………………..
Average players
Livaković, Juranovic, Kramaric, Mario Pašalić,
Lovro Majer, Nikola Vlašić
Not Impressive
Livaja, Petkovic, Sosa, Stanišić, Šutalo, Barišić
Martin Erlić, Vida, Ivica Ivušić, Labrović,
Ivanušec, Petar Musa
The name changes …yet the stupid lists stay the same!
Who would have you dropped to have orsic?
Livaja or petko
I would have dropped livaja
Petko and orsic still have chemistry im sure as a good last few minutes if we needed a spark and goal
How do we set up against this version of the Dutch squad?
Interesting match up. I wish it was the semi final we got to play
I meant the semi at World Cup…