Luka Modrić came on late for Real Madrid (75th minute) in their 2-2 1st leg Champions League semifinal draw against Bayern Munich Tuesday night. Upon coming onto the pitch, Modrić threaded a perfect down-field lob to Vini, who could have easily tied the match up after the quasi break away. Modrić still sending absolute dime passes to his teammates at 38 years old. The 2nd leg will take place next Wednesday, May 8th, in Madrid.
Luka Modrić made history at the Allianz Arena Tuesday night, becoming the oldest player to feature in a Champions League match for Real Madrid at the age of 38 years and 234 days, surpassing Ferenc Puskás’ record.
We did call out Kovač. Multiple times. Most people on here consider him a disaster of a coach.
Your original point (if you even had one) was that diaspora Croats wouldn’t pick Croatia over their home country, and you used a Serb to try and prove your point, lol.
But your statement is completely false.
Now you’re hitching your entire argument on Niko Kovač and his failures as a coach.
I agree that he was a bum coach, but it doesn’t mean he wasn’t a proud Croat who as a player would choose to represent Croatia over Germany. He did (even if you claim he wouldn’t).
He sold out as he got older, and a lot of career focused people do that… But again, none of that proves your original dumb point that diaspora Croatian kids wouldn’t choose Croatia over their birth countries (when we have a new diaspora name added to our pool on a monthly basis).
I guess Lazar Samardzic didn’t get the memo, lol
Born in Germany – he represented Germany thru to U21
Germany didn’t need him for senior side (when they have Musiala, Wirtz, etc)
So he chose Serbia – already has 7 caps – and will start at the Euros
Identical situation to the Kovac brothers
I guess Lazar wasn’t turned off by Serbia’s terrible performance over the years
Or maybe he’s making a business-decision and knows playing internationally gives him more exposure and can further his career
Like Aston Villa’s Matty Cash – not good enough for England – so use’s his mother’s parents Polish – and gets a passport to play for them
He did not speak a word of Polish before playing for Poland – had absolutely zero affinity for Poland / his roots – pure business decision
Even jokes he needs a translator to understand the coach
https://www.facebook.com/SoccerAM/videos/matty-cash-language/717743916356157/
“Sammir was praised by Kovac during the build-up [to the World Cup] as a rejuvenated player who decided to give late night partying a rest and concentrate on honing his skills.”
Here is Sammir stats leading up to the 2014 World Cup
https://www.transfermarkt.com/sammir/leistungsdatendetails/spieler/45710/plus/0?saison=2013&verein=&liga=&wettbewerb=&pos=&trainer_id=
There is NOTHING in his play at Getafe from Jan 2014 that warranted a call-up to the National Team – nothing
In 17 La Liga games:
– 4 times not even in the Squad
– 4 more times on bench (unused sub)
– 13 games he did appear he logged 315 minutes and as an “Attacking Midfielder” playing #10 he only got 1 assist
Today – if there was any player with these kind of crappy stats – we would say they should not be at upcoming Euros
So the reason Niko selected him (and played him vs. Cameroon) – as bc Dinamo had a sell-on clause in the Getafe transfer – so were hoping he could make another big $$$ move (and Dinamo pocket their % – he did move to China the following year)
There was nothing in Sammir performance, behaviour, etc etc etc etc that suggested he was proud to wear the checkers – the opposite – he publicized he was playing for Croatia to help him in his eventual move back to Brazil
“Personally, I want people in Brazil to remember me as a good player and speak of me as such when I return to the country one day. I want to make an impact in this World Cup and I can only improve playing alongside this Croatia group.”
Sammir
Kovac brothers only care about themselves and making $$$
Anyone who thinks otherwise has a low IQ and lacks critical thinking
If u were true and proud Croats u would also call out any “fair-weather” Croats when u see them (the fact u don’t speaks to ur lack of love for Croatia and as such u should be embarrassed by urself)
99.9% of their club playing and coaching career has in Germany
2013-2015 Croatia coaching was a complete failure and entirely self-serving (so they could get a gig in the Bundesliga)
2014 WC – embarrassingly Niko CALLED UP SAMMIR and gave him playing time at the World Cup. If Niko was a proud Croatia first – Sammir would have never been called up for the WC or anywhere near the national team (if he was receiving pressure to call him up – he would have resigned and announced publicly that he refuse to go against his principles – but he never did that (you know like our beloved Boban did at UEFA over Ceferin))
2016 Euros – we almost didn’t qualify bc of Niko – look at the results – they don’t lie – and we had to bring in a repairman to fix the mess for the last 2 games
If Kovac brothers cared so much about Croatia – they would have spent the last 10 years coaching Dinamo, Hajduk, Rijeka, etc and help turning one of those sides into a European power-house and making the HNL more respectable abroad (as opposed to ping-ponging around the Bundesliga and Monaco wherver the most $$$ was available – just wait till they go coach in Middle East or Asia)
I don’t even know what Robert does – at 50 y.o. he still follows his brother around and has to be his “assistant” everywhere and every time – unable to stand on his own two feet still, lol
I hope Modric wins another champions league trophy.. 🏆
That will be amazing if he happens to score in the semi final or final if they go through. Modric is a legend
I’m not sure if anyone watched the Leverkusen game yesterday. Stanisic has really grown as a player, and is becoming quite impressive. He’s full of confidence…consistently making forward runs, and still very composed defensively.
Yep. His value on Transfermarkt reflects this.
https://www.transfermarkt.us/josip-stanisic/profil/spieler/483046
I just wish Bayer Leverkusen included an option to buy in his loan.
I would prefer he stays with Leverkusen instead of going back to Bayern.
They’re still looking to bring him in through maybe a swap deal for Jonathan Tah in the summer. Stanisic and his agents should everything in their power to force the move permanently to Leverkusen.
should do*
Aleksander Pavlovic – who starts at Bayern already – already capped for Germany
For those under illusion that he’s good enough for Germany to call up – but they missed him – so we’re going to sweep in and get him
Kovac brothers would have played for Germany if they were good enough – but it’s not like Niko was ever going to make it ahead of Michael Ballack
Can’t think of one e.g. of a German-born ethnic Croat / Serb that was good enough to be called up for Germany (and that Germany wanted) that chose to play for Croatia / Serbia instead – not one
Never mind Klose, Podolski (who were both Born in Poland), Boateng, Ozil, Gundogan, etc
Khedira, Emre Can, Musiala, etc etc etc
You’re choosing bad examples. Blatantly lying about the Kovač brothers too.
Pavlović chose Germany because Serbia is virtually nonexistent in football.
Most diaspora Serbs his age spent their youth watching their National Team miss tournaments or finish last place (whenever they do qualify).
That amount of losing has a mental effect on you, especially when you’re young.
I’m older now, and I remember having a big rivalry with Serbs my age about football. But when I look at the next generation, you just see proud Croat kids with their checkered kits… and nonexistent Serb kids. Those younger Serbs just choose to cheer on their places of birth (or just opt to follow NBA ball and buy a Jokić kit). It’s so rare to see a Serbian National Team kit on a kid nowadays. They’re probably embarrassed having to wear it in school and having to explain to their classmates what it is and why they’re wearing it.
A guy like Pavlović probably spent more time watching and cheering for Germany than Serbia.
Now compare that with a diaspora Croat his age, growing up watching Croatia rock Germany in tournaments and getting to brag to his German friends every day how his small country can slap them around. It makes you proud.
Ivan Rakitić would have been Switzerland’s greatest ever player, but he chose to be just another random midfielder in Croatia’s history of quality midfielders.
Austria and Germany can’t even hold on to one single diaspora Croatian youth player because they’re all committing to Croatia so early.
Matanović was considered a legit German prospect, but he changed teams.
This is a big risk for youth players to do, yet they’re still taking the risk.
We all saw how Bayern were jerking Stanišić around when he was non-commital about National Team selection. If he chose to play for Croatia earlier, they likely would have invested less in him (since Bayern are known for pushing kids into the German National Team).
We now even have guys like this Belinho kid turning down Brazil to play for Croatia (and yes, he turned down Brazil).
These medals in these past two World Cups will continue to pay dividends, especially for those 10-12 year old age group. Kids are growing up admiring and watching Croatia, and we’re already seeing the results of it with these youth selections.
Thanks for your comments. I don’t have the time or energy to reply to anon’s nonsense. Kovac brother’s are proud Hrvati, and its complete B.S. to suggest they would have chosen Germany if they had a chance.
Stanisic is good enough to play for Germany, he chose Croatia though
Yeah, he’s good enough to make any national team in the world.
I will always respect Stanisic because of the difficult task he had in front of him while developing in Bayern’s system but wanting to play for Croatia.
He’s not some elite superstar talent where your club team will invest in you no matter what.
Bayern is very particular about the ‘role player’ talent they push in their youth systems.
Stanisic always wanted to play for us, but he had to be careful with his intentions which is why he had to go on record saying that naturally he would play for Germany.
The only reason the media and team would even ask him this question is because he was a dual citizen and was considered a flight risk despite already being on Germany’s U19 team.
He stayed quiet about all the Croatia stuff, allowed himself to develop a couple of more years (to the point where his career developed and was too valuable to dump) and then switched National Teams.
Now, he’s a €18 million player on Transfermarkt.
Masterclass move.
Alessandar Pavlovic doesn’t sound Croatian to me
For those looking at Bundesliga 2 for our options (even the Serbs can put a team together of players playing in 1st tier football)
Here is a list of Croatian players playing abroad
Let’s not stop at 2nd tier football though – let’s continue to 3rd, 4th, etc levels – just in case we’re missing someone – that isn’t good enough to play 1st tier football but is good enough to play for Croatia
https://ca.soccerway.com/players/players_abroad/croatia/
As e.g. in case taking 6 CBs isn’t enough – there is a guy called Nikola Tavares – playing in 5th tier in England for Dagenham & Redbridge – he’s 25 y.o. – we love to have 25 y.o. CB in our squad – so let’s add him to the mix (he was capped already for us at U18, U19, U20 levels – he was trying to play for South Africa at some point – but had some “passport issues” – so I think we could still have a chance)
I assume you are referring to us following youth prospect Igor Matanovic as us “looking at Bundesliga 2 for our options”…
He’s an Eintracht Frankfurt player who was on loan there because he’s a valued prospect for them. They are one of the best teams in the Bundesliga and just recently locked Matanovic up to a long term contract, taking it to 2029.
It’s obvious that you’re just some bitter Serb trolling us here. I understand that watching your team miss tournaments has taken a toll on you.
I can’t imagine growing up watching my team get embarrassed regularly 6-0 in tournaments.
But just stop following football then. Focus on the Denver Nuggets and watch Jokic. Honestly, it will do you a lot of good.
Should we call up Lorenzo Prso (Dado’s son) ?
He’s 23 y.o. plays CB currently in 3rd division in Belgium
Spurs have a 16 y.o. winger (Mickey Moore) on bench today vs. Chelsea
Won’t be shocked if he comes on 2nd half
And we’re lucky if we call up a couple of 21 y.o.
And debating whether a 23 y.o. Marco Pasalic is ready to start at RW
Is Mickey Moore getting called up for the senior England national team?
No, but Dalić should be calling up more 16-year-olds like managers did back in the day with Josip Radošević, Alen Halilović, and Ante Čorić. The repka was in better shape back then with all that young talent getting a chance to prove absolutely nothing. And more non-Croatian players too, while we’re at it. Jorge Sammir Cruz Campos and Anas Sharbini never got a fair chance because of all this insistence on promoting “true” Croats on the national squad. All I can say is we’re doomed.
lol
All-time top 12 capped players for Croatia
11 of 12 were capped b/w 19-21
So good luck waiting to cap someone until after 22
History isn’t on your side – that they will stay around long
btw: Radosevic, Halilovic, Coric – were all brilliant business-focused call-ups – their early call-ups to the national team led to big $$$ moves (which wouldn’t have happened otherwise)
Those initial transfer fees were never exceeded for those three players (i.e. future transfer fees were all lower than the initial $$$ Dinamo / Hajduk received)
Ditto Sammir
That’s what you call brilliant business
https://croatiansports.com/the-weekend-water-cooler-kramaric-bags-2-goals-friday-night/#comments/506614
@MART:
Hey buddy🙂 would you oblige me with your opinion on Matanovic? And wow I didn’t expect Dalic would travel to Germany to watch him play, especially for a game in 2. Bundesliga.
I read in SN that Dalic was going to watch Matanovic in person, and speculation is that if he continues to play well and score goals, he could be a surprise selection for the EURO. He is tall, physically strong player, good in the air and plays with both feet although he is right footed. The goal that he scored on the weekend was a wonderful strike with his left foot from the edge of the box into the left top corner. The way he hit the ball you would never guess that he was right footed.
He also had a number of delicate touches and passes around the box and is technically far superior to for example Ante Budimir or Roko Simic. He is a very promising player for us, however although the standard in Bundesliga 2 is not bad we will have to wait and see how he goes next year when he returns from his loan to Eintracht Frankfurt. He is 20 and needs to be playing regularly and there is always the risk when he returns to Eintracht that he may be on the bench? which could curtail his future development.
May as well cap him early.
He’s still eligible to play for Germany’s senior team.
Yes, I agree the sooner the better.
Puno hvala MART!
Yeah let’s see how Matanovic does at Eintracht next year, but after reading your evaluation of him, I can’t help but feel a little excited. All right, I’d better not jinx this ha ha.
Let’s please all pray for 100% health for all our players b/w now and June 15
As well as a healthy recovery for Perisic and Orisic
As e.g. Spurs have lost Udogie, Ben Davies and Timo Werner for the rest of the season w/ injuries in the last week
Lots of injuries across the board due to temperatures heating up coupled with long season of training / fixtures
This is an older video, but man Dani Olmo speaks some pretty impressive Croatian https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-dWHhRTghIE&ab_channel=TJSports%3AExtra%21
Modric has so much more left to give. Would you rather he extend for 1 year longer at RM, or move on to Dinamo?
Yeah he still has a lot to give. How about 2 more seasons at Real?😁
Modric is a legend. He can do whatever is best for him and his family and I will be happy for him. However…
From a personal selfish perspective I’d like to see him at Dinamo from next season. It would be great the profile of the HNL, it would bring extra fans and viewers, increase the value of the league, advertising contracts, it may inspire someone to build a stadium in the country. He would have an incredible influence on the team, dinamo could perhaps make an impression in the UCL and all of this would be tremendous for Croatian football. And myself, as a Dinamo fan….
Anyone watch Prime’s Saving Sakic doc yet ?
Any Croatian-related angle worth watching for ?
Watched it. No Croatian angle that I remember. Actually, didn’t have that much of Sakic in it compared to others. Found it disappointing.