It didn’t take long for somebody to snatch up the 26 year old after his inspiring performance at Euro2012. A price has not been put on Mario Mandžukić’s head, but we know the deal will last until 2016. Many Hrvati were expecting a Crottenham Hotspur in Wolfsburg, but the trade frees up space for Lakic and Olic to play side by side for a struggling Wolfsburg side.
Photograph: Francisco Leong
Aside from the excitement of another man in checkers heading to a superpower, the big question on many people’s mind is, “How much will he actually play?” With a sour taste in the mouths of supporters after seeing Olic and Pranjic benched for most of the 2011-2012 season, fans are skeptical as to whether this is the right move for Mandžukić. Being a skinnier version of Mario Gomez, many are asking where and how he will fit in a German side already packed with power.
Farther East, Vedran “Ćarli” Ćorluka has joined Slaven Bilić at Lokomotiv Moscow after officially signing a three-year deal on Wednesday.The 26-year-old made 81 appearances for Tottenham since 2008, but a rash of injuries and success of Kyle Walker saw Ćarli fall out of favor for the English side. This is a great start for Lokomotiv and Bilić, as they now have a rock in the back. But with Corluka following the flood of players to the East for big money, what does this mean for his career and the strength of the Croatian back four?
So, Prva Generacija, what’s your take?
Why can’t Bilic coach both Russian domestic and international…Croatia?
I read on the Bayern forums, very mixed opinions on their signing of Mandzukic. I don’t know, ya maybe his is near his peak age but I do think he can improve and for sure help us on our way to Brazil
I was hoping he would go some place else. Still in his first season, Olic mangaed to keep Gomez on the pine, mayby Mandzukic can pul, something like that. There is defienately a talent present and I hope to see him improve and become a productive part of the NT in the next few years…Ana, nice picture!
Btw some Croats still think it was a pipe dream for Cro to progress further into Euro 2012, but we had an Italy and Spain defeat within our grasp. If this team stays composed and healthy the outlook for Brazil 2014 is looking good provided WWIII doesn’t kick off before then…
Judging by Gomez’s uninspired performance against Italy today and Mueller’s timid displays at the Euro’s most of you are selling Super Mario short with his move to Bayern. He will be very effective and will consistently start ahead of or with one of those two.
I’m liking Petric’s move to Fulham. No doubt helped by his masterful free kick against them at the 2010 Europa League semi (i think?) and of course left foot shot that bounced England out of Euro 2008.
Who says you need to be a millionaire to bang whores every night? All you need is a big cock, like me.
lol
^^^
* A game is not awesome solely for its goals and chances.
Sorry, forgot to add that in. It’s like watching Modric: he is an architect of the playing field. He doesn’t score much or make assists, but he manipulates the playing field to his own wish.
Maybe that could be said of the Portugal v. Spain game.
@ Shinobi
A game is not awesome solely for its goals.
It was nerve-wrecking to see Portugal dominate the game flow(except extra time). I was rooting for Spain, yet Portugal were putting great pressure on the Spaniards.
Who was gonna score first? Either team could have, though, which made the game exciting in my opinion.
Well, looking like an Italy-Spain final. Looks like ours was the true Group of Death….and we played well against both!
Mijatovic has joined FC Ingolstadt on a Free Transfer
when Croatia joins the EU 😉
Right now its hard for Croatians to play in Serie A because they have a non-EU rule…and they prefer to sign Argentines, Brazilians, Chileans, Africans over Croatians at this moment
When are we going to have a Hrvat at Lazio?
@Mainzfeldski
Are you serious about spain v portugal being an awesome game?
That was a lacklustre affair, not many chances at both ends. The game did pick up at extra time though.
i dont rate Gomez that highly.
With the service that Mandzo will be getting at Bayern, and with his hustle which i think is better than Gomez’s, he will be filling the net over there. Barring a lack of playing time…
ok you guys may know more but you think with any of the boys who end up playing for bilic in club it might actually deter them in national side.. i though i heard bilic and stimac don’t exactly get along… maybe this may cause friction??
I wish Corluka nothing but the best luck and the most safe clean woman he can handle. Have fun in Moscow, buddy.
Watched Portugal and Spain.
Awesome game. Penalties were hectic.
I would have preferred Corluka signing with Juve or one of the other top Western clubs who showed interest, but Moscow isn’t too bad. He has Bilic giving him guaranteed starts and a leading role in the back, and Lokomotiv could potentially become Champions League material (if they’re serious about spending).
I was hoping Manzo would go to Everton, but I knew that was a pipe dream. Everton is not a big spending club, so no way they could afford Mandzo. If he manages to start for Bayern, it’s a great move. If not, then it’s not so good since many see Jelavic and Mandzo as Croatia’s starting striker tandem for the next two tournaments.
for Corluka its all about playing, I’m not thrilled he went to Russia but at least he will play. Interesting to see if Bilic plays him as a RB or CB
I think Juve would have been a better option for Manzukic. At Bayern he won’t start much, especially in the big Bundesliga/CL matches. Maybe Bayern will rotate more this season
mandzo only cares for sex, drugs and alcohol. he shouldve been a footballer 30 years ago. if he actually cared he would be world class. but id be the same.
As long as he’s getting first-team football and is happy, I can’t see a problem for Carli. He’s with our beloved Bilic as his club manager so I guess there’s no danger of him not getting play time or being intentionally left out and tooled by the club, which happens to a lot of our players. If Stimac follows a similar system to Bilic, then I guess we can be hopeful that Bilic and Carlie working together at Moscow will be good for our national team form. I’m just worried since Corluka had a pretty clumsy tournament at the Euros, especially against Ireland, and moving to such a demanding and rough league in Russia, he’s in danger of turning into Simunic; strong, tall but slow and stupidly clumsy for no reason. Hope thats not the case, Bilic will probably make good use of him.
At least Mandza will be getting some top league experience. If Bayern have another good run at the CL, even if he only gets a few games in, at least he’s learning how the big teams play and getting used to those nervy and pressured environments at the stadium. It kinda worked for Olic, he didn’t play much at Bayern last season but when he did play he was pretty good, and when he joined the NT on duty he was even better. His performance against Turkey, with thousands of fans booing around the stadium didn’t seem to bother him at all.
bayern just traded in their old model for a new one, thats all it is lol
theyre so stacked offensively i cant see mandzukic getting more start time then olic did, unless he really wins his way into the starting XI
There is some talk that Vedran Corluka will go to Spartak Moscou instead of Lokomotiv Moscou.
About Lakic and Olic at Wolfsburg. It will not that easy to be in the starting 11. A great new young striker of Holland, Bas Dost, will play at Wolfsburg too next season.
About Petric: they are saying he will go to Fulham but apparently Malaga is very interested too.
Petric to Fulham for 1 year
——————–
Bilić ga nije šmekao, Jol ga obožava: Mladen Petrić godinu dana u Fulhamu!
http://sportske.jutarnji.hr/bilic-ga-nije-smekao–ali-jol-ga-obozava–mladen-petric-godinu-dana-u-fulhamu-/1037721/
@ Ziva
I don’t blame him though. Dude is 6’4”, good looking, probably a millionaire and in no rush whatsoever to settle down. If I were him, I’d bang every whore too, fuck it. 2-3 girls in one sitting a night would be my norm. Just hope he has enough brains to wear rubbers.
That is the one down side for Corluka…..Knowing how he is always on the prowl for girls (he is drawn to those who look like whores), I hope he can remain disease free.
Bad move for Mario. I could see from a $$$, if they threw him a lot of Euros, jebiga – it’s hard to say no. But Bayern already are stacked at the back with Gomez and Mueller and even if they try to deploy him as a wing, he still has stiff competition there to land a starting spot. I can easily see Mario getting forgotten about on the Bayern bench.
I know a lot of folks don’t like our guys going East, but both the RPL and UPL have been growing and getting better for years now (both are Top 10 leagues in UEFA) and with a lot of team owners flush with cash, both leagues will only get better. We all like and hope that our beloved NT players play at big teams and ‘name’ teams that we can brag and boast about, but in this particular situation, it’s the best for Carli.
Lokomotiv will finish Top 5 in the RPL this upcoming year. If Carli sticks around for a few years, becomes an anchor back there for them, has a good showing in Europe, come 2-3 years from now he’ll be able to move back to Western Europe to a big team and get one last big pay-day before he hits his early 30’s.
It’s a win-win for all sides and interests, in Vedran’s case. He’s playing in a pretty competitve league, in one of the biggest cities in Europe, with the ability to play in Europe in the coming years and Lokomotiv willing to open up their pockets for him.
Plus, all that picke in Moscow isn’t gonna know what hit them once Vedran gets there 😉
Bravo Vedrane, svaka cast!
Good move for Mandzukic. 3.5 million gaurenteed money per year for the next 4 years.
He’s going for his paycheck – well deserved, but will be on the bench less than halfway through the season. Stimac won’t play him because of lack of playing time with his club either, so, in effect, he’s taking a year off and then ask to transfer.
Hopefully he can make a good impression on Jupp Heynckes and can get good playing time!