How Does Croatia Kickstart Their WC Qualifying Campaign vs. Gibraltar?

Croatia head to Faro to face off against Gibraltar in their first game of the 2026 World Cup qualifying campaign. Behind the Czechs and Montenegrins by six points, Croatia have some catching up to do, and three points are an absolute necessity coming from this match. Kickoff is Friday June 6th at 2:45pm EST.

Zlatko Dalić is looking to qualify the Vatreni to their third World Cup under his tenure, in which back-to-back top three finishes have been achieved. With a somewhat new look to the National Team and the integration of youth absolutely key, how will Dalić approach this experimental match with Gibraltar? Below is my projected starting XI fielded by Dalić.

Under Zlatko Dalić, the integration of youth into the starting eleven has always been a slow process, with Baturina and the Sučić cousins being the most recent newcomers. 18 year old phenom, Luka Vušković, has just earned his first National Team call-up, but don’t expect him to start in his first game.

Goalkeeper: As long as Livaković is healthy, don’t expect any changes here. He is our best shot-stopper at the moment and nothing points to that changing.

Defense: With Borna Sosa greatly out of form and no other real options at the left flank, expect Joško Gvardiol to be covering at left-back for the time being. Yes, his best position is centre-back, but with great options like Šutalo, Vušković and Ćaleta-Car (yes, he is out of form with Lyon, but he’s been good with us lately), don’t expect the Manchester City star to be moving to the middle. I highly doubt Vušković will earn his first start tomorrow so the pair of Šutalo and DCC is to be expected. However, I would be heavily disappointed not to see some Luka minutes in defence over this international window. Stanišić is coming off strong seasons at Leverkusen and now Bayern and will likely be the starter at the right flank.

Midfield: Some reports hint at Modrić being rested tomorrow (as he should), but expect Dalić to likely start him (or at least give him a cap off the bench). Should he not start, I’d honestly expect Nikola Moro to start over Luka Sučić, as it seems Dalić views the latter as an advanced midfielder. The new Inter Milan midfielder, Petar Sučić, will likely start in lieu of Mateo Kovačić. Martin Baturina will take the attacking midfielder spot, and I’d love to see Toni Fruk minutes off the bench but it seems as though he is out for the match against Gibraltar with a knock.

Attack: Reports are also hinting at Ivan Perišić earning some rest against Gibraltar, but I’ll believe it when I see it. I’d love for Marco Pašalić to finally get a start as he’s been absolutely torching the MLS, and you can’t tell me Gibraltar is stronger than MLS competition. But knowing Dalić, I don’t think Kramarić sits, and unless Perišić is rested, we won’t be seeing Marco Pašalić in the starting lineup. After his world class production for Osasuna this season, Ante Budimir is our solidified number 9 and deserves to start every game going forward. I’d like some Ivanović minutes off the bench in the 60th-70th minute however.

Substitutes: The most deserving of minutes off the bench against Gibraltar are definitely Luka Sučić, Luka Vušković, Marco Pašalić and Franjo Ivanović. I’d like to see Fruk against the Czechs (if he is back from injury), but we will likely be seeing Mario Pašalić, Vlašić, Majer and Moro this window as well.

What are your predictions for this opening match of the qualifying campaign? We can expect Gibraltar to set a tight low-block, but Croatia’s sheer footballing quality should be more than enough to disrupt that. Hopefully Croatia can let loose offensively and put four or more past the European minnows.