It’s been the Luka Modrić/Mario Mandžukić show lately on CroatianSports.com, but when your best two players are winning trophies with arguably Europe’s best two teams, it must be talked about.
On Wednesday, Luka Modrić played the full 90 minutes in Real Madrid’s 2-1 win over hated rivals FC Barcelona in the Copa del Rey Final. Although Modrić had a quiet match in yet another El Clasico installment, he did his job while ex-Tottenham teammate Gareth Bale stole the show. With the game tied 1-1 in the 85th minute, Bale made a 60-yard run with the ball while being bounced out of bounds to finish the match for Real. Barcelona’s Neymar would get a golden chance to send the two teams into extra time but his shot from within the box hit square off the woodwork.
Bale goal @ 2:00
In other Cup news around Europe, Mario Mandžukić played the full 90 minutes in Bayern Munich’s 5-1 DFB Pokal semifinal win over Kaiserslautern Wednesday night. The win means that Bayern will face off against Borussia Dortmund May 17th in Berlin. Bayern Munich will be looking for the German double for a second consecutive season after already winning the Bundesliga this year. Mandžukić scored the fourth goal for his side in the 78th minute when he took a pass on the right of the box and slammed it home just inside the left post.
Mandžukić goal @ 0:48
@IvicA @Mr. Black
Regarding Nicholas Llanos. Yes, he is one of the most talented croat players U19 in Europe and now is playing for HNK Hajduk.
http://m.slobodnadalmacija.hr/tabid/296/articleType/ArticleView/articleId/251167/Default.aspx
Čestitamo and congrats to Modrić for winning this year’s Copa del Rey. 🙂
Halilovic needs to be in the squad he can add some pace down the wings in the second half and skill that we lack. Also it will be a good experience for him.
Obviously being from Cro media and all it’s prob only half true to begin with lol
I would like a Brozovic or Palasic or Halilovic on the squad personally
@ nepoznat . fair enough. i didn’t realize brozovic was on there too.
Plus Kalinic the GK so that is at least 3 HNL players
http://sportske.jutarnji.hr/kovacevih-21-izbornik-je-vec–odlucio-da-na-sp-idu-igraci-koji–su-izbacili-island-u-doigravanju/1184509/
@jm well Brozovic and Males are supposedly on the 21 man squad that Niko has already decided on, with 2 spots left to be figured out
Regarding Cop,
If I’m not mistaken, if cop isn’t on there, there won’t be a single HNS player on the roster ( assuming no Halilovic and obviously no Simunic). Pretty crazy. Compare this to previous world cups
1998 team: 10 HNS players
2002 team: 4 players
2006 team: 3 players
LOL! Nice one Poglavnik
HA!
Kinda funny when you spell “school” wrong…
That’s what happens when it takes 3 high schools to graduate. 🙂
Oh!
Lets not forget my “slick” Nick Van Exel jersey in high scholl too!
Damn kids are so spoiled these days!
My first jerseys were an Eagles Randall Cunningham in grade 5, a Canucks Cliff Ronning in grade 6, a Dinamo Zagreb around grade 8, a Colts Faulk in grade 10 and a PSG when I was about 17. All were either Xmas or birthday gifts too.
I was, and am, a sports nut and I thought I had it pretty good when it came to jerseys as a kid.
Fuck Real Madrid and their millions.
If there is a god, Athletico will take La Liga and UCL.
Actually believe Isus Krist was the embodiment of a za DUH…Spremni lifestyle.
I pray for Isus Krist to be present in the heart and La Decima for Real Madrid.
Yeah good to see you honouring him after 10 posts today already LOL
Anyways, what do you guys think about this track?
http://youtu.be/9KIU9cgRaxc
Finishing ahead of Barcelona is minor. The real prize for Real is winning La Liga and CL. If they don’t win both it will be a major disappointment considering how much money they have pumped into the team. This whole season has been about those two trophies. Winning CL is a major payday in itself.
Ok friends,
Good Friday is upon. In solidarity with Isus Krist, I will be off the computer for the rest of the day as we honor God Friday. I suggest many of you do the same. After all, it is the “za dom…..spremni” way.
I wasn’t commenting you you in particular Ziva, it was a general comment to the goofy responses some people have made!
I made the cheap comment. It was a joke.
Knock off jerseys are made and are perfect for kids.
I laugh at some of my friends who buy original gear for their new borns just so they can have their kids model some new gear and show off.
My last comment was to anyone who thinks we are cheap for buying a knockoff…I find it funny people measure a persons cheapness based on a kids jersey!
Cheap is the guy that goes out for pints with his buddies and keeps his hands in his pockets when it comes time to pay…the guy that counts to the last penny how much who owes and the guy that never buys a round even after he drank the last 8 for free…I’ve seen many of those guys, they’re cheap!
Regarding cheap uniforms!!!!!
Anytime I go to Croatia I buy those cheap knockoffs, they are what they are but when you are buying for kids….it’s a great option. Here in Canada an official uniform is $80…that’s fine if you have one kid, I have 5 as well as a nephew that lives a block away from me so it’s like I have 6! Kids grow fast, a uniform lasts maybe 1 year…my nephew had at least 8 uni’s I got for him from several different teams and he wore them religiously…until you have kids, more than one, I think you’re nuts to tell anyone else they’re cheap to buy knockoffs…
Good points but Serie B, even today, is better than the HNL.
I think he will get called up to the camp and will get a chance. I just don’t think he has the quality.
But, at some point a decision will need to be made on who do you pick after Mandza and Olic. I don’t have much confidence in Jelavic and Da Silva. So, somebody is going to make the team based on default.
Regarding Cop- I have never seen him play, I don’t know what he looks like other than a few photos on Croatian sites but here is my input! Some or most people would say he should first prove himself in bigger and better leagues, I would also agree with that theory if we had 3 great attackers firing on all cylinders and scoring goals regularly, but we don’t!
Being in form can be a funny thing as most of it is mental. If he is on fire, scoring nice goals, is a team player and plays well then I will say take the chance but make sure you use him, otherwise that form that is built on confidence can be easily shattered and many people will not recognize that part of the equation and simply say….see, he wasn’t ready!
There is an example of this. Many years ago there was an Italian soccer player, Toto Schillaci, he played the first 7 years of his life (until he was 25 or 26) in Seria B, at 26 he became a beast and played very well for Italy in the 90 World Cup….after only being in Seria A for 1 season….so as in the case of Schillaci…if Cop is flying high on confidence and is scoring goals when nobody else is regularly doing so, take him…what do you have to lose?
Mandzukic is scoring but we always need more options!
Maybe a bit of a disappointment, but not too much.
This season was looking like a disappointment after the first half of the year. Nobody would’ve guessed that they would catch on fire like this and finish ahead of Barca (and even win the cup over them).
Barcelona has some key aging veterans and cannot purchase anyone for 18 months. Atletico will most likely lose their star striker this summer.
Real, on the other hand, is in an upswing. They’ll build on the momentum from the second half of this season and do well next year (everyone expects that).
So, I think any disappointment from not winning CL and La Liga will be short lived, especially since they will finish ahead of Barcelona in both.
5 years is a long time. Going by Real’s history with coaches, even when they win, Ancelotti wont be around for five years.
Perfect match right now with him at charge, but lets say Atletico wins the title and Real doesn’t win the CL, this year will go down as a disappointment for Real Madrid fans.
true……..
As for the Neymar injury, if Barca have nothing to play for at the end I am sure he would shut it down and not risk anything for the World Cup.
Ancelotti + Real Madrid = Modrić legend !
Now that his homeboy Bale is in effect, they will win trophies for the next 5 years.
Sit back and enjoy the ride boys.
Boys, lets also remember this about Cop and the current season.
He’s the leading HNL scorer by default.
If Benko would of stayed with Rijeka, he would of ran away with the scoring title this season. Hell, if Kramaric was the #1 forward for Rijeka this entire season, I think he would be 4-5 goals ahead of Cop.
Not to mention, he plays on a Dinamo team that talent wise, is head and shoulders above the rest of the league.
If Benko were still at Rijeka, we would be talking about Benko’s call-up and Cop would be a non-topic.
Barcelona announced Neymar is hurt, out at least 4 weeks. He should prob be OK by the WC, but it’s something to keep an eye on. Would be a nice equalizer for Cro given Mandzo’s red card.
http://espnfc.com/news/story/_/id/1788859/barcelona-confirm-neymar-alba-four-weeks?cc=5901
For the world cup i dont think he should be called. I do think he should be considered for the euro qualifiers.
True, still young. But, he did go outside of Cro and failed, albeit at a very young age. Not sure what the circumstances were in Portugal. Too young? Not ready, who knows???
Again, to me he doesn’t appear to be a player for the repka. But, I do base my roster on merit and because of that he has earned a look.
Well, Duje Cop is still somewhat young and at least he’s a full blown Croat.
Him playing in HNL until he is 23-24 and then looking to sell him is how we SHOULD be doing things in Cro (rather than creating hype and selling them off before they’re even 20 to a team that they can’t even crack the roster on).
Based on his scoring rate, he deserves a callup to these friendlies. But to the World Cup? I dunno. If he plays in these next few friendlies and actually looks good on the field out there, then I guess so. He’s still young and could be a decent striker off the bench for us in the future.
Cant wait for that last round if things are still up in the air. The Spanish press loves to create controversy and story lines.
I see Duje Cop is getting a lot of play from the Zagreb media and the Mamic brothers that he should be on the World Cup roster. He has decent stats this season, but he doesn’t pass the “smell” or “look” test for me. I don’t ever think he will be a player good enough to produce on the international level. But, as I said, the stats are OK. So, what say you croatiansports.com nation. Should Cop get a World Cup roster spot. I think he benefits from a watered down croatian league and playing for the best team in the league. Nothing at his previous stops suggests he is a national team caliber player.
@Soul Champ
Well, Real may not be La Liga champions this year, but yea, they will be the dominant team for the next 3-5 years. Currently, Atletico is on fire and if they win out, then this year’s title is theirs.
But, Atletico plays their last game of the season against Barca…which will be very interesting.
Does Barca beat them, which would give them some revenge for that Champions League loss but also hand their rivals Real the La Liga title?
or
Does Barca lose point to Atletico (yet again) and give them the title just so Real doesn’t win it?
That last round is going to be a bitter lose-lose situation for Barca. Especially after recently losing out to both teams in the Champions League and Copa del Rey.
Ancelotti + Real Madrid = Modrić legend !
Now that his homeboy Bale is in effect, they will trophies for the next 5 years.
Sit back and enjoy the ride boys.
downgrade for him and Real.
Modrić is going nowhere.
Madrid is his home until his play starts to decline with age. He will be there until he is 33 or something. Going anywhere prior to this, would be a downgrade for him.
@Ziva
Thank you for the morning laugh. Lol
@Ziva
I understand your point. But I do not think its impossible. I the the only thing stopping him is that he does not want too play in London again. But I understand your point.
@Adame…….that man has to be the saddest man on the planet. You say he is from Split, huh? Makes sense.
@Stipe………anything is possible, but that is unlikely. For a transfer to happen the player or players involved have to be willing to make the move. What you posted is all rumors. On a scale of 1-100 if this would happen, the chances is zero.
If anyone is in or around split let me know. I know a guy who has numerous match worn jerseys for sale.
This is the quote about Jose Mourinho trading Oscar for Modric ” “This could be a possibility. Mourinho is a fan of the strong Real Madrid star. He knows Modric will be expensive and would be happy to exchange a pretty good player Chelsea. The player Mourinho wants at Chelsea is Modric and he is willing to include Oscar plus cash in the transaction,” Spanish television station La Sexta quotes Gallardo as saying.
Pretty interesting, it is very possible, I remember Branislav Ivanovic was pushing hard for Luka Modric to come to Chelsea before he singed for Madrid
I was reading online and it says that Jose Mourinho is willing to swap Oscar for Luka Modric…is that even possible considering Modric has a contract with Madrid? I do not know too much about how soccer contracts are conducted, can anyone explain please?
@Anonymous
True, but you can always choose to not buy it. US and European made goods still exist (at a premium cost).
Problem is (as proven in the conversation above) that PRICE will always be first, second, and third to most people…with QUALITY finishing a distant fourth.
Half the crap we buy/wear is made in China anyway. Cheap labor my friends. Quantity not quality is what this world has come to.
I’m tired of seeing kovacic get the rented mule treatment. Hopefully he begins to start and becomes Kovacic Unchained. Brazil beware…..
It’s even worse when people go out and buy a jersey of an adult.
@ Mishko Good and Bad girls in every country every city. When i was in Split there was an uglier girl than her really big and fat so yeah. Any Croats here going to go out and buy a Barca jersey with Halilovic on the back that would be funny because he’s not even 18 yet.
croatianamericanfaggotsports.com
If I were you guys I would get those shirts tested for Lead and SARS before putting it on your kids, lol.
Also we will see if I get an English C on the end of my name 🙂
I just bought it today, I’ll let you know in 39 days or less lol
For my purposes, at that price it doesn’t have to be to perfect, just match the two my mom made for my sons. So the HNS badge not having correct shading like on the new one won’t bother me etc
Ljudi moji, jeste skrt.
Nepoznat,how is the quality of the jersey?
Guys, stop buying cheap Chinese garbage.
@ Mishko
Ok, not the svelt Dalmitinka from the club, but those you rarely want to take home to the family.
She seems courageous, one of you younger dudes should look her up and support her on her path.
@ Nepoznat
Nije Bitno has received the gear?
Either way it’s not that much. I want to customize it but was unable to find the links on the site. I’ll look it more when I get a chance. Perfect for the kids !
Kovačić is the real deal full faith in his ability. Mazzarri is poor mans Mourinho trying to give our boy the Juan Mata treatment. Lui e finocchio giante !
@mishko
Yes.
http://forzaitalianfootball.com/2014/04/inter-club-focus-icardi-wins-wanda-derby/
Inter’s coach Mazzarri handed a shocking start to Mateo Kovacic in midfield, taking everyone by surprise. The Croatian has rarely been seen in the starting eleven during Mazzarri’s reign and he didn’t disappoint with a highly motivated performance.
The Nerazzurri fans have been calling for Mazzarri to play Kovacic in midfield for months and after finally giving in, the Croat started flanked by Esteban Cambiasso and Hernanes.
Kovacic’s work rate was inspired as he led Inter’s attacks and contributed in defence also. He made four tackles to retrieve possession for his side and was also dominant in building the team’s attacks from deep too.
His pass to Palacio in the build up for Inter’s third goal opened up Sampdoria’s defence and conveyed what Inter lack when he doesn’t play. He is a reliable option which the team can lean upon and Mazzarri has to give Kovacic more of a chance to prove himself.
And in other news are all girls from Split this ugly?
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=a7E2iORIdbI#t=69
.
Slavonac & Soul Champ
From the other thread it seem Nije Bitno already got his from one of the $20 listings. I figure all are the same or just about the same and from only a couple original sources before it hits Alibaba/Aliexpress. Also I bought an Away kit but I agree the extra white would be better on a Home jersey. I like my 2010-2012 Home Jersey better than this years anyways
Also if you want it by the World Cup you better order soon, takes like 39 days for them to make them and ship from China (or that’s when it is guaranteed to arrive by)
Good point Ziva !
Robert Jarni is the closest I have ever seen a nogometaš run like Bale. Dude runs like a horse down that wing. His left foot loves that left side of the pitch.
Rebić is the only kid that has that sort of size and speed.
Need him healthy if only to run for a good 20 minutes.
@ Nepoznat
Can I also ride off your coat tails and find out the level of quality of the gear ?
That home jersey is an opportunity to brand the prezime as it needs the white print to balance out the strong red.
Nepoznat- please let me know when you get the uni’s and if the quality is good enough for kids…I might get some pre World Cup!
Sometimes the best deals are the ones you don’t make. Real Madrid wanted Neymar. They thought they had him at one time. When Barca got him, they went with their plan B in Bale.
@ jm
That Neymar deal screwed up their locker room.
They have so many attacking wing/forwards. Pedro, Sanchez, etc …
Not to mention Messi and Iniesta!
Mandžukić would have lead that line like a champ.
Jebi ga they need to shift things up a bit as that slow build up puts there own team to sleep.
Ronaldo would have had a trick yesterday.
Just a little more belief and Modrić will be scoring more goals. I pray he has a couple of golazzos for the repka.
He needs to seize the opportunity when it presents itself.
FYI – ESPN3 is replaying yesterdays game RIGHT NOW. Just starting.
.
Not sure if you guys have seen these, but the FIFA WC website
has some Croatia gear I haven’t seen elsewhere.
http://store.fifa.com/departments-2014-fifa-world-cup-brazil–shop-by-country-croatia-men-short-sleeve-t-shirts.html
@Ziva
Thought you’d like this.
This moron essentially eliminated himself from the 30 man provisional squad for the WC.
What a tool!
http://espnfc.com/news/story/_/id/1788570/hertha-berlin-benches-john-brooks-tattoo-flap-reports?cc=5901
Colin,
To!!!! Hrvatski Dragovoljac knows what’s up
nepoznat – no problem brate
Panathinaikos will also play the Greek Cup Final after 120 minutes football yesterday. Schildenfield played the full 120 minutes, Pranjic was subbed out after 105 minutes while Petric was subbed out after 70 minutesd.
Just gotta say, this dude, Tomic, from Hr. Dragovoljac is such a champ.
http://m.gol.dnevnik.hr/clanak/hnl/evo-zasto-je-malo-poznati-igrac-hrvatskog-dragovoljca-postao-junak-bbb-a—332179.html
@Nije Bitno HVALA for the aliexpress.com jersey tip, I bought a jersey + shorts combo for $16.58 with free shipping. And that includes name & number customization!
Don’t worry Ziva I may have Rakitic’s number but it’ll be my own name on the back LOL. I went with #7 because my mom finished the custom #10 for my Luka and #9 for my Sebastian so this way we all have our own number. I will post a pic of my guys in their custom jerseys to show off my mom’s skills hehe
http://www.aliexpress.com/item/Sale-promotion-Jersey-Croatia-shirt-away-blue-TOP-Quality-2014-World-Cup-soccer-jersey-shorts-kits/1765682147.html
http://www.dailymail.co.uk/sport/football/article-2606423/Mario-Pasalic-join-Chelsea-Hajduk-Split-3m-deal-forward-expected-sent-loan-Jose-Mourinho.html
Another youngster leaving Croatian league?
http://www.eastgrinsteadcourier.co.uk/Aston-Villa-plot-Napoli-midfielder/story-20973543-detail/story.html
@ Mr. Black
That Nicholas Llanos kid is born and raised in Cro. If he was any good, he’d be on our junior NT right now, or at least with one of Hajduk, Rijeka, or Dinamo. I think his family is just trying to gain some attention on him by spreading these stories.
Cro league may suck, but at least there are European scouts who show up there and could snap you up. It’s still better than playing in the Colombian league for peanuts and zero exposure (and possible death threats if you play a bad game, lol).
Poor Luka… the Copa Del Rey trophy is almost the same height is him…
but damn, for a guy that’s 5’9”, can he boss a midfield…
@ soul champ
barcelona’s attack did seem surprisingly toothless yesterday and seemed to lack a big target in the box to cross ….mandzukic seems like he could actually be a good fit there. unfortunatley barca hands lookslike they’ll be tied in the transfer window
Man what a shot of Modrić with the copa del Rey and Ancelotti in the background. Plus you get extra training with Zidane!
I’ll tell you this Barca could have used Mandžukić this past season INSTEAD of Neymar.
I also think Real Madrid should get Mandžukić this summer. As Bale ascends into his full form I see Benzema getting in the way. Mandžukić stays out of the way of his world class wingers.
Mandžukić and Modric on the same team?
Jebi ga buy Rakitic as well !
We do like to Savez bash on the site and it really does sound like they fell asleep with Drmic which is a great shame.We do need to remember though that they must do atleast a bit right as well.We have over the years succesfully courted a number of players.Some have worked out,some not eg-Seric.It will always stir some controversy eg-Sertic.Romeo Jozak from the HNS was in Sydney a few months ago and this always causes a stir here as it is considered that they are always here to steal talent eg-Simunic.They do indeed check things out,though its always denied.I have heard Sydney United as being described as a HNS training ground! Its there job to do this and tap as much as possible,simple as that.
Interesting stuff. Wouldn’t be surprised if the Savez falls asleep on him too just like it did with Drmic and others.
A new star?
Colombian Croat football player wanted by Genoa and Vitesse
Croatian Times
There is another football player with Croatian roots that attracts the interest of European clubs. Nicholas Llanos, 18, talked to Croatian Times about the possibility of playing abroad, after Colombian national junior team invited him. He currently practices with Opatija FC. He still admits there was no interest from major Croatian clubs to sign him, but the interest came from other countries. “Not from Croatia. From Holland, Vitesse FC. They wanted to sign me on scholarship basis as well as Genoa from Italy”, the player has revealed to Croatian Times. He would still like to play for Croatian junior team despite the fact he was already invited to play for Colombia. “If Croatia would give me the chance to probe with the junior team, of course I would accept it,” Llanos said. Born in western city of Rijeka, Llanos also spoke of how spending his early years in different countries influenced his style of football. “When I was 2 my family moved to Colombia, South America. and when I was 6 we moved back to Croatia. People call me “Colombian” maybe because my football style and because my father is from Palmira, Colombia”, he says. But having a Croatian mother, he will be supporting the country at the World Cup. “We have some of the best players in the world: Luka Modric, Mario Manzukic, Ivan Rakitic. For sure Croatia will be a nice surprise at the World Cup,” Llanos predicts.