Joško Gvardiol assisted on the lone goal of the game and was voted MOTM in Manchester City’s 1-0 win over Brentford Sunday. Gvardiol sent a long 40-yard lob into the box for Haaland to fight for before finding the back of the net. With the win and a Liverpool loss, City now trail new Premier League leaders Arsenal by only three points. Gvardiol received an 8.1 FOTMOB rating. For the second straight match, Mateo Kovačić made the bench but did not play for City.
Luka Modrić played a full 90-minute match Sunday as AC Milan battled out a 0-0 draw against Juventus in Torino. Modrić should have easily had at least one assist in this match as his ball into the box in the 2nd half led to an AC Milan penalty. Pulisic missed and put the ball into the 17th row. In injury time, Modrić sent a perfect through-ball to Leao in the box but the Portuguese winger needed to do better with the shot. Outside of their keeper Mike Maignan, who made a huge point-blank save, Modrić was the best AC Milan player on the pitch.
Per SempreMilan, “It was between him and Maignan for MOTM, but considering he played the pass that led to the penalty, and then set up Leao for the 1v1, it feels like the right call. Obviously, he was very involved in everything as Juve allowed him time on the ball (sitting back).”
The CroatianSports.com official “alarm bell” is ringing for Croatia #1 goalkeeper Dominik Livaković. Since coming over on loan to Girona from Fenerbahce, Livaković has yet to play one competitive minute in La Liga. His last club start was August 31st for Fenerbahce and his last competitive action was September 8th vs. Montenegro in World Cup qualifying.
Croatia has a huge WC qualifier against Czechia this Thursday on October 9th. That means when he takes the field (because there is no way Dalić benches him) it will be a full month between any competition for Livaković. At what point does this become a real issue if he continues to ride the pine in Spain?
Luka Vušković played 90 minutes and picked up a 8.1 match rating in Hamburg’s 4-0 win over Mainz on Sunday. “While Hamburg’s attack grabbed the headlines, their defensive performance was just as impressive. Luka Vušković, the 18-year-old centre-back, was a commanding presence throughout, winning an impressive total of 16 duels, which was more than anyone else on the pitch.”
I was impressed with both Valinčić and Dion Drena Beljo in the Dinamo match yesterday. Those two stood out to me. Valinčić is a good defender, is fast, and keeps possession well. Beljo is a big target, good in the air, a good finisher like every #9 should be, but he has the added skills of being fast and dribbling exceptionally well. He’s like a hybrid of Mandzukić and Kramarić in a way.
I’ve been a big fan of Valinčić.
The only drawback I see from him is that sometimes he can get a bit too aggressive and physical but then again, I’d rather him be more aggressive than passive (like Borna Sosa).
Beljo has been somewhat of a pleasant surprise. I didn’t like that Boban spent so much to get him, but at the same time I do like is role at Dinamo.
He very big out there (I keep forgetting that he’s almost 6’6″ tall) and takes up a lot of space in the box.
I just wish he was more hard working or aggressive. He doesn’t seem to run and fight for the ball…he kind of just always waits for the pass.
His positioning is good, but he’s not an elite finisher (uses a lot of chances) which is why I wish he did something more, like fight for the ball and create chances for others.
We’ll see how the HNL season and Europa goes for him.
***.youtube.com/watch?v=0i2vD0udOYI
Watching this VLOG for the Maccabi match – gives insight into DDB personality off-the-field which better explains his approach/behaviour on-the-field
From the VLOG, his eyes move very slowly, seems a little nerdy (sitting in his seat watching recommended football videos, which he proudly shows), lethargic, personality-wise almost seems a big nerdy/wet noodle, and sprinkle in a bit of “social anxiety/ackwardness” into the mix – almost like the whole thing is a burden and he’d rather be in bed
That’s what Anonymous thinks we see on the field
Compare/contrast with Mudri – who is 100% off-field as Anonymous would expect based on how he plays on-field – cheeky, smiley, outgoing, expressive, social with others, etc
Kule is also exactly 100% off-field as Anonymous would expect based on how he plays on-field
Anonymous not surprised that Mudri and Kule hang out together while on the road – their personalities (both on-field and off-field) mesh
Haha I called that Dalic would end up activate the call up for Luka Sucic!
Not sure if it’s by ego that he put him on stand by, or rather that he’s actually activating him now to pep him up since it’s not going well with real sociedad right now but god does it look like mind games from Dalic from the outside
Pasalic goal last night for Orlando: 2:45
https://youtu.be/qOb3SrkQj0g?si=l5Fio1c4GNbsqrHa
livakovic bench
Juranovic injured
Sosa hopeless
Kovacic bench
Baturina 1st start
Ivanovic officially benched – no chance to get sub in despite benfica needing a win
We’re screwed, aren’t we?
Did they officially announce the benching of Franjo Ivanovic?
When was the press conference?
No official press conference on Franjo benching yet
Got postponed
Mourinho was too busy asking reporters how much they make
x.com/_widefootball/status/1975450391518322731
The modric disaster for the nt continues. Another 90 minutes. The good news is by riding him till the wheels come off, they can use those same wheels for the wheelchair he shows up to the World Cup in
Anyone seen how lebron manages his career now to stay high performing at an old age. Very methodical and within moderation. And lebron only putting in 35 minutes a night. Luka putting in 3 times that
A 35-minute load in basketball is the equivalent to 90 minutes in football. Does Modrić look like he’s burning out? No. With all the midfield depth Croatia has, why worry anyway?
The difference between LeBron and Modric is that Modric doesn’t suck at what he does.
Don’t disrespect the king man
Lebron played MORE minutes in 2024-25 (2,444) than 2011-12 (2,326) and at least 5 other historical seasons – so his load is increasing as he ages
Anonymous can’t check/fix Truth’s sub-par analysts’ work every time
Truth – pls invest in better underlings – garbage in/garbage out
***.statmuse.com/nba/ask/lebron-minutes-by-year
Zlatko Dalić on Livaković’s status at Girona:
“It’s not good for him or for the national team that he’s not playing regularly. You know my stance and my thinking about players who have been part of the setup for a long time, but we’ll see.”
In other words, no way we see Kotarski get a fair shot in goal anytime soon.
Well Kotarski just spoke up in the media.
So, it’s either going to net him some minutes…or a harsh permanent benching, ha ha.
Either way, it will do something for him.
Dalic will F with him and bring him on as a sub for the last 5 minutes vs. Gibraltar and after the match say “he wanted minutes, I gave him his minutes”
That would be gangster by Dalic
Looks like Dalic is close to calling up Valincic who has been playing well for Dinamo both in HNL and Europe. With Stanisic injured and not available Dalic should call up Valincic for these matches. This would give us two options for the RB with Jakic also able to play there.
Valincic is physically strong, quick and dangerous going forward. Juranovic has never been solid defensively and is injury prone and has hardly played this season due to injury. Valincic is the ideal replacement for him in the future at RB.
He called up Ivan Smolcic, instead of Valincic. Unreal.
What’s unreal? Smolčić is also a very good right back. Just because he no longer plays for Rijeka doesn’t mean that he’s no longer relevant. The guy starts matches in Serie A for a good team!
Unreal, in the sense that Valincic has played 4x more minutes this season vs. Smolcic (1000 vs. 250 min – round #s)
c.1/2 the squad is players injured/not playing at all (Liva, JJ, Stanisic), players just coming back from injury (Kova, Gvardiol), and players that get limited minutes from the bench (Sutalo, Bati, Luka Sucic, Majer, Moro)
Now add Smolcic to that (instead of Valincic who’s playing a lot and performing)
Compare the players above to Fruk – he’s already (over-)played 1275 minutes this season
I’m a big fan of Valinčić and I wanted him on the team a month ago, but I’m glad that we at least called up SOMEBODY to back up Jakić at RB.
Sick and tired of Dalić picking a starting eleven with zero intention of using his subs, then having to ‘panic sub’ in players (out of position) when someone gets a card, an injury or is playing poorly.
Valinčić is likely a far better RB than Jakić is, but he is going to have to prove it to Dalić (and probably many others).
I know a lot of people aren’t ready for it (just like they weren’t ready for Gvardiol and Vušković)…but Valinčić has a much stronger skillset than Jakić.
Valinčić is not only faster and physically stronger, but he also has a creative skillset (similar to an offensive-minded midfielder). You can see this in spurts at times when doesn’t hesitate to cut into the middle (during a counterattack) and isn’t afraid to create a play. He created our second goal against Fenerbahce with this skillset (after assisting on the first goal using a typical ‘RB on the flank’ skillset). The guy pretty much won the Fenerbahce game for us.
I don’t mind Jakić though. He’s a hard worker and (more importantly) it looks like we’ve moved on from Juranović (who is a massive defensive liability for us).
I like Jura, but our backline has gotten so much better over the past two years now, it’s just foolish to hold onto the old guard.
What I like about Jakić is his very cool head when it comes to defending and his excellent vision when he has the ball. Maybe Valinčić would have that too if called up, but Jakić has already shown it on the national team, playing a role effectively in support of other more dynamic players. Ultimately, a player’s value on the repka right now is how well he supports Modrić, Perišić, Kramarić, Gvardiol, and Šutalo. That’s why Jakić, Ivanović, Stanišić, Petar Sučić, Budimir, and Mario Pašalić have been effective in this campaign: they all know how to move around the other guys, although they are all great players in their own right too. Smolčić is a good fit for that role because he has the same role at his club and also did at Rijeka. Maybe Valinčić can do that too, but no need to mess with what’s working. With that said, if I were the manager, I would drop one or two CBs from the squad and call up Valinčić. Jakić and Stanišić are both able to play anywhere in the defensive formation if needed and have proven it in the Bundesliga already. There is no need for six CBs on the squad.
The squad should carry four CBs and two #9 strikers (Beljo or Matanović in addition to Budimir).
We really need both Jakić and Valinčić, since it looks like we’re going with Stanišić full time at LB.
We need to go at least two-deep at RB and LB…and we need to cut Sosa and Jura from the team as both are too defensively weak (and neither are playing regularly anyway).
It looks like it’s starting anyway with Sosa being demoted to the ‘pretpoziv’ list and Dalic already commenting on Jura’s lack of playing time.
We’ll see if Valinčić gets to play ahead of Smolčić. I don’t think Smolčić gets regular starts with Como though, so I’d rather Valinčić get the opportunity.
Gorica 1-3 Rijeka
Toni Fruk played a part in helping Rijeka to go 1-0 up in the 22′. Made a great pass from deep on the right flank that found its way to Cop whose shot was saved only for the rebound to be cleaned up by Dantas. Fruk then put Rijeka 2-0 up in the 68′ with a nice solo effort that began with him carrying the ball from his own half.
Bologna 4-0 Pisa
Nikola Moro put Bologna 2-0 up with a free kick goal in the 38′ (ball took a slight deflection on its way in).
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rp-nY9Ussb0&t=56s
Lazio 3-3 Torino
Toma Basic with an assist in the 40′ to help Lazio go into the break 2-1 up. Hit a cross-field pass from Lazio’s own half for his teammate to run onto and score. Taken off in the 67′ when Lazio was still leading 2-1.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ld5rOXriqC4&t=39s
Remember when people here were saying that Vušković would be lucky to even get some playing time in the Bundesliga this season?
…and that regular minutes on the National Team (ahead of guys like Erlić and Duje) would essentially be a pipe dream?
Pepperidge Farms remembers.
Remember when someone on here was saying Luka Sucic is all this and all that…….. lol.
(I mean that in a good-spirited way…but still, never saw in him what you apparently did. Guess I’m not alone though.)
I also thought that he would struggle in Bundesliga and he did against a strong team like Bayern. Good to see him doing well, but in my opinion, he still has a long way to go before getting a start for our seniors. No way would I start him against Czechia on Friday ahead of DCC or for that matter even Erlic.
Hey man, Luka Sucic and Ante Budimir were the gamechangers at Euro2024. Created all our goals and chances.
They have great chemistry together with Krama. It’s not my fault Dalic refuses to give him time with Krama/Budimir (at least off the bench).
I’m glad he’s at least realized that Budimir needs to start with Krama behind him.
I still have nightmares about that 4-6-0 formation he played against Italy that cost us.
PAGING MART !!!!!!
Based on performance at HSV, Vuskovic should 100% start.
Czech called up some 35 y/o striker – previously uncapped – to fill the striker void. Pretty sure Luka can deal with him.
Realistically, Dalic may start him vs. Gibraltar – but unlikely vs. Czech (although he should)
Most people didn’t have a problem with vuskovic. It was just your argument, at the time, You kept going on and on about and how dalic is an idiot for not calling him. And that he’s so good that he should be starting basically.
And most people were like well maybe he should prove it in a competitive league. Like weather we win WC or not it won’t be because Vuskovic plays or not. End of day he’s 18 and he’s in the national team. Maybe he’ll start next WC I think he won’t as long as other players are playing regularly and healthy or maybe he will
Vuskovic has been called up and maybe he’ll be the next Maldini or maybe he’ll be the next Joe simunic. But he’s not Maldini at the moment.
Also let’s look at the list of guys he’s called and player
Luka sucic many times before he turned 22
Baturina again many times before he turned 22
Rebic he started immediately back in 2018
Petar sucic again many times before he turned 22. And yes you will say he called him to late, true he did however easy to say bench brozovic a guy who ran his heart out for two tournaments and still had some gas in tank from the couch.
Gvardiol age 19 , Vuskovic , brekalo, 5 years ago Ivanovic, etc etc.
The list goes on and on, I now dalic is not much of a tactical coach, guy will never replicate the success of national team and I myself have criticized him many times esp for starting perisic at last Euros. However he has made some changes through the years and maybe there’s something to be said about playing your guys.
I don’t think we will do well at the WC cause I don’t believe kramaric perisic and budimir will work in real games and I think when Kovacic is healthy the mid and forward attack will be
P. Sucic, kova, modric
Kramaric budimir perisic.
However I do understand he why he’ll do it .
I hope Kovacic goes on loan in January. I feel like he could really shine in a smaller club where he gets a lot of play time. I feel like his best time at City/the momentum that allowed him to play a lot is already in the past with all the new players that got in
It’s so good to see Modric given several full matches to play! Real Madrid did him (and the repka) a favour by letting him go
Even if they ended up rotating goalkeepers, I still think Livakovic should change clubs. At 30, like Kovacic, these guys deserve respect and are hungry to play before the end of their career. It’s really a shame though how Livakovic never really got the respect he deserved! Maybe he (and Orsic actually) just should have stayed at Dinamo like Bruno did
With how good Vuskovic keeps playing I have hopes that Dalic might actually start him. A major quality Vuskovic seems to have is that he still delivers even when under pressure to performe – I think Luka Sucic and Petar Sucic have this quality too. Unfortunately though I think Baturina needs more time to overcome that mentally and play to his best
Modric played a full match against Juve
He almost had an assist at the end of the game if Rafael Leo finished the chance
A perfect pass by Modric late in the game. Incredible how he does that, threads those passes through….
Put Leao in the clear, just had to beat the goalie.
Leao should have ended the game right there, but he couldn’t finish.
Modric again had an excellent game. One of the best players on the field.
Vuskovic had another very good game today. The commentators were praising him throughout, very, very impressed that an 18 year old was playing with such confidence, standing up to strikers in the Bundesliga and basically shutting down their attack.
Actually there were two perfect forward passes from Modrić…he also sent a perfect pass that resulted in the penalty (which Pulisic missed)
The funniest part about that pass (which led to the PK) is that the pass bounced off the top of the head of the fouled Milan player (who was flat on the ground).
Modrić’s passes always find their players. 😆
Looks like Lokomotiva players don’t read this site. Don’t they know they are supposed throw the game to let Dinamo win?
Can anyone who watches the HNL comment on Krivak’s potential? He seems to be playing well . . . What is his potential to be a future member of the NT?
What is the story with Vidovic? He was highly touted at one time. Two years ago he had a pretty good season with Dinamo. If I recall he had decent stats that year with Dinamo. He has returned to DZ and now hardly sees the field. If I recall, people here have said he lacks pace, but he was pretty good in his last trip at DZ. Has he fallen back? Has DZ just got stronger? What is the future for Vidovic? I thought he would have a good year this year . . . But it hasn’t happened . . .
DZ got stronger.
He might suffer from the lack of pace and lack of physicality that plagued Josip Brekalo’s progression.
Luka Sučić is benched again. That’s doesn’t seem too good for him. Can’t help but think his sister is partly to blame on all of this.
Yeah, I’m starting to think if this is something more than his sister. I’m starting to think this might be a mental issue like a lack of confidence or something.
Puzzling what’s going on with Sucic
He was subbed on part way through the second half . . .
I don’t get La Liga so could not watch it . . . but Sofascore indicates he didn’t play all that well . . .
In the context of the NT, it’s fair to blame the sister, because they have played that same weekend every June for as long as I can remember. It’s not a lot to ask to plan accordingly.
What’s happened since then can only be blamed on him. He’s clearly done something to fall out of favour with RS, and consequently not work his way back into Dalic’s good graces. He was one of their best players last season, and it’s not like they don’t need help, sitting in the relegation zone after nearly a quarter season. Something smells fishy.
Dream start Hamburg
2-0 after 9 minutes
We all missed a big one last weekend
LETICA PERFECT 10 (!!!!!)
***.sofascore.com/football/match/fc-sion-fc-lausanne-sport/WYscZ#id:14038749,tab:lineups
8 saves
Highlights
***.youtube.com/watch?v=RGcryoYgzOw
Doesn’t show all 8 saves – but two of the saves they do show are WORLD-CLASS
Aria “Danijel” Danata
Vuskovic starting 11:30 EDT Sunday
Lokonga (ex-Arsenal) midfielder slots in at RCB – replacing Omari
Capaldo in midfield – replacing red carded/injured Fabio Vieira (also ex-Arsenal)
https://www.reddit.com/r/Juve/comments/1nxvyj8/igor_tudor_ahead_of_milan_match_i_played_with/
Igor Tudor was doing a press conference and said thet he is proud what Modric did for Croatia but he hopes he plays like crap against Juve
Is there any chance dalić calls up franko kovaćević? Yes it’s the slovenian league but hes lighting it up over there.
When Antonio Čolak hit a similar hot streak with Rangers (right before the 2022 World Cup) he didn’t get a callup.
I doubt this Franko kid will get one anytime soon (and we have less of a need for strikers than in 2022).
Franko is a journeyman who hasn’t scored regularly on any team in his career, and now all of a sudden he’s scoring alot.
I really hope this is some career turning point and not some flukey hot streak… but he’ll need to do this for much longer before getting a callup.
Good news is that he’s at least playing some decent teams in Conference League, so we can measure him against non-Slovenian competition.
Agreed
Goals by Musa and Marco Pasalic in MLS.
Musa
x.com/MLS/status/1974584976738849051
Marco Pasalic
x.com/MLS/status/1974630267185758221
Goals by Musa and Marco Pasalic in MLS.
Musa
https://x.com/MLS/status/1974584976738849051
Marco Pasalic
https://x.com/MLS/status/1974630267185758221
Can we talk about Livakovic literally not playing at all for his club?
After a move that finally sounded right he must be biting his fingers about it…
I can’t believe he actually agreed to join Girona knowing he wouldn’t be the first GK. They must have assured him he would be for him to make the move…
Yes, he made a mistake moving to Girona.
It will be interesting to see what Dalic will do long term, if Livakovic is stuck to the bench. Kotarski is in good form, however for the match against Chechia you have to go with experience and pick Livakovic in the starting 11.
We’ll see what happens in the next three months.
If he’s still playing backup at Girona, maybe he transfers somewhere in January.
There may be other reasons for the loan. He may have better goalkeeping coaches at Girona. Maybe they are eventually going to alternate keepers based on form like Osasuna did when they signed Aitor Fernández as an upgrade from Sergio Herrera but then had to play both alternately because of how good both were (before Herrera eventually proved himself to be one of the best keepers in the world and became the regular starter). Gazzaniga gave up a lot of goals in one match recently. It’s possible that Livaković eventually replaces him.
Pink Pandur
8.8 FOTMOB (MOTM)
Hull 1 vs. 0 Sheffield United
Hull currently 14th place on 12 points (6 points clear of relegation)
He saved xG 1.96, including a penalty in 88′ to keep it 1-0
x.com/SkyFootball/status/1974464182624944464
However, his passing 21/46 (46%) and long-balls 8/33 (24%) sucked
Stimac’s FB post complaining about “islamizacija Evrope” (and signing off w/ ZDS) while coaching in Bosnia is wild and might go down as one of the greatest self-sabotages in history
sportsport.ba/fudbal/hsk-zrinjski-igor-stimac-fk-velez-fk-sarajevo-prijave/508253
Europe is not being islamisised. Absolute nonsense. I’ve lived in London, it’s a multicultural city with all sorts of people from all over the world. Aussies (atheists), Brazilians (evangelical Christians), Africans (mostly Christians),, Filipino (mostly catholics), East Timorese ( mostly Christians). The paranoia about Islam is nothing but a ploy to direct working class frustration at a scapegoat rather than at the corporate institutions which actually cause the economic crisis. It’s also a way of justifying imperial aggression, such as Israel’s genocide in Gaza, in the Middle East in order to get cheaper access to oil. It’s run by think tanks including Israel’s Mossad agency. It’s a load absolute garbage. Do some research and stop believing fairytales and fanciful horror stories 🙏🏻
Did you hear Trump saying Mayor of London Sadiq Khan wanted to bring in Sharia law there?
That just shows how retarded Trump is
lol, well if Trump said it…
Wow, someone on this website who isn’t a Trump nut-hugger and far-right wing wanker. Actually great to see lol.
This from a man who has coached in India the last 5 years…… look in the mirror first and think on your own decisions. Said right by the wrong person imo
Stimac coaching in India the past five years is probably why he’s so open about hating on Muslims, haha.
Those guys hate muslimani more than anyone.
Not really smart lol but as long as he keeps getting results he’s not going anywhere. Štimac also said Zrinjski is the second best Croatian club currently . No doubt a slap in the face to his former club.
Mourinho wants to get benzema to re enforce striker department for his 4231 formation..time for ivanovic to pack up.
Pray hard mourinho cant perform and get sacked soon as his results is not fantastic