Lovro Majer got the start for Wolfsburg Saturday and assisted in a 3-2 loss to Stuttgart. In Majer’s 65 minutes on the pitch, he helped open up the scoring for Wolfsburg in the 50th minute, threading a pass to teammate Joakim Maehle in the box for the goal. Majer received a 6.7 FOTMOB rating for his efforts.
Luka Modrić came off the bench in the 63′ for Real Madrid Saturday in a crazy 2-2 finish where the referee whistled the game over while Real Madrid’s game-winning cross was in the air. Never seen anything like that before. Modrić supplied a “hockey assist” pass on the equalizing goal. Another good showing for the Croatian captain. He received a 7/10 grade from ManagingMadrid for his “Intelligent pass to Brahim Diaz to open up the lane for Brahim on Madrid’s second goal.”
Both Mateo Kovačić and Joško Gvardiol sat on the bench Sunday in Manchester City’s 3-1 win over Manchester United. Gvardiol returned to the squad after sitting out for 3 weeks due to a minor ankle injury. City trail 1st place Liverpool by one point.
Josip Stanišić played 90 minutes at right-back Sunday for Bayer Leverkusen in a 2-0 win over Koln. With the win, Leverkusen now sit 10 points in front of Bayern Munich for the Bundesliga crown.
https://streamin.me/v/e6db37fe
Here is Budimir’s beauty.
Dalić wants to win the Euro cup and has a team (a group) that is capable of doing it and knows the way to the final. Each of those players was called up for a reason, including Vlašić (great PK taker, great at holding possession in the final third) and Vida (the guy just scored a goal yesterday and still plays 90 minutes regularly). Ivanušec was playing really well for Feyenoord in european competition and is just a great footballer whose only problem at his club is that he isn’t Dutch. Pjaca is in form and is an experienced player with great possession skills and a great shot. Erlić and Pongračić are 90-minutes per game players in serie A. Baturina is the next big thing. The message is about who was left off. A bunch of players who might have been expecting callups are being told that they will have to keep improving.
You forgot good ol’ Lovro “Zvončići” Zvonarek
Does anyone know what the pot is for this Jihady Cup thing?
Tunis is first up and if we win play winner of Egypt new Zeland if we loss v tunis we play the loser of Egypt new zeland
INSANE Budimir goal… that’s 14 goals in La Liga this season.
For those still calling for Petkovic to start… you have to be joking. When it comes to national team football, it’s all about recent form. I’d argue that Budimir isn’t just the most in-form Croatia attacker, but the most in-form Croatian player in general right now.
Good goal, wearing a mask and scored with his left foot from the edge of the penalty box. Got subbed immediately after scoring.
I totally agree. He is playing so well right now better than any other national team player. Such a treat to watch. Only shame is he is already 32
No shame. Mandzukic took us to the WC final at age 32 and Suker was 30 when he won the Golden Boot in 98.
No prob
Zorro Budimir just belted in a banger for Osasuna v Alaves
Guys drink a rakija and calm down.
You should already know Dalic is Conservative coach doesnt trust young players only put in Gvardiol because he is generational talent. This team called to this taliban kup will be at euro 2024. He sticking with his boys and main cast of players.
One thing is i think Domagoj Bradaric deserves a call because if you look at it Sosa is our only lb with Dalic playing Gvardiol at lb which i would rather see him a cb only period.
Lets hope no injuries before euro our 11 is set with one change every game that being wing postion.
Livakovic Juranovic/Stanisic Gvardiol Sutalo Sosa MBK Ivanusec/Perisic Budimir Kramaric
Rudeš wins !!!
Luka vuskovic with an early goal today!
https://x.com/lukavuskovic_44/status/1764743518583484663?s=46
Goal here
<>
March Abu Dhabi squad announced
Fully stacked team
No real “experiments” w/ young next generation (a bit disappointing)
Surprised to see Ivanusec (given this limited minutes at club)
Vlasic has 2 goals / 2 assists as an “attacking mid” at his club this year – he scored Jan 7th – nothing since (no goals/no assists) – if he isn’t creating at his club – than why are we calling him up – drop him
Luka Sucic on stand-by (guess his “injury” not so bad – great to hear)
Marco Pasalic has been a bit “sleepy” at Rijeka recently – but he should be called up – so he can spend more time around the squad (esp. since we know he brings the passion)
Is DCC really our back-up-back-up CB these days ?
Is Niko Sigur really our back-up RB behind Stanisic / JJ – does his performance at Hadjuk justify this ? If he is (might be) the future – than call him up too – so he can spend time around the squad (Modric – his idol)
koji kurac Perisica? ovo je izlet za njega. ništa više.
mali Sigur je dobar za HNL. ali moraju gurati neki hajdukovac. nadamo se da mali zna bar malo hrvatski pa ne gleda u Modrića i pitaj za neku sliku na kanadskom/engleskom.
Gdje je poziv za Rakitića? Fali mu oproštaj.
Davor is just upset that Kossounou didn’t get called up
Ha !
“But But But African cup ! African cup ! African cup !”
Don’t understand why we don’t give guys like Lovro Zvonarek and maybe even Luka Vuskovic (he’s played a few games in Poland now) the opportunity to join
The coaching staff / players get a chance to understand their character – so we know early on if they have the right attitude – and conversely we can mold them as necessary
Zvonarek instead of Vlassic
Vuskovic instead of one of Sutalo/Erlic/Pongracic (I think Vida is going this summer – he wants a senior player on defence) – since they aren’t all three going to get minutes over the two games anyways – 5 CBs is a bit overkill (and 6 w/ DCC on stand-by)
koji Vuskovic? drogiran ili maloga.
neka zasluže poziv. Prije 9 mj. neki od vas su htjeli Šimića. gdje je sad.
They have good things to say about zvonarek on some Bayern pages I’ve seen
Good news
Let’s hope he can pan out
I agree
Good experience
We should always throw one of these kids into the mix especially on the non important stuff
You could argue a guy like vlasic may be more likely to play if needed but mostly these last few additions don’t play
So why not
Give them some atmosphere
Zvornaek sounds like he can be a real character guy and potential captain type
Bring him in!
Zvonarek needs to prove himself at a higher level before being called to the national team. Kid looks to have potential from what I’ve seen. Coaches rave about his character which is why he was captain of Slaven belupo at 16. Personally I think Zvonarek made the wrong choice going to Bayern as it’s very difficult to break into their first team unless you are a mega talent. He could have went to Redbull Salzburg which is a much better place to develop your talent than Bayern is.
kako?
I can’t remember the last time I’ve seen Osijek look this dangerous. Damn they looked good today…they were definitely motivated.
Yes, Osijek were unlucky not win they had the better chances.
Yep, I totally agree!
Nice to see another one of our young coaches (Zoran Zekić) doing well.
We seem to have quite a few intriguing coaches now in that 45-50 age range (Edin Terzić, Nenad Bjelica, Zoran Zekić, Igor Tudor, Ivan Jurić, etc.).
Plus we have that 31 year-old coach for Bayern’s U19 squad (René Marić) who is doing very well with them.
Sounds like we will have a decision to make when Dalic retires here soon. Glad we have options to consider. As always, I like the idea of using local countrymen if at all possible. Domace products, buy Croatian when possible.
Speaking of coaches, it is interesting our Handball Federation have for the first time ever, appointed a foreign coach from Iceland. We have Olympic qualifiers coming up this month against Germany, Austria and Algeria. First two in the group qualify for Paris.
I guess if we do not make it? he could be a goner.
Zekic has not done much with Osijek and there is a good chance that he will get sacked at the end of the season. Nenad Bjelica has done really well with Union Berlin. When he took over, they were deep in relegation zone and now it looks like they will survive the drop.
It cannot be understated how well Bjelica has been doing at Union Berlin.
They were at 2W and 10L when he took over (and were deep into the relegation zone).
They have gone 5W 4L 3D since then.
At this rate, they will finish mid-table…but had Bjelica been coach at the beginning of the season, his record would have secured them European competition.
He’s a great coach, but I don’t think the Savez likes him too much. Bit of a hothead personality when compared to the more beta Dalic type.
Maybe his record in a top-4 league changes things, but he’s in a good situation and probably doesn’t leave this opportunity for the National Team.
Uh oh.
Josip Stanisic started and played the full 90 minutes in Leverkusen’s win today. Kossounou was on the bench the whole game, and
Some guys here are going to be upset.
I thought he was washed up??
But seriously tho JJ looks like he is having an off year
Would it be fair to say his game is a little more based on speed more then skill and when he loses that he will decline?
I haven’t watched him enough
But we need both him and stanisic on that right side to be at their best if we want a deep run this summer
Any links to the Osijek game?
2022-2023 – Modric playing 90 min every game for RM – he will be exhausted for Croatia
2023-2024 – Modric only playing 48* min every game for RM – he won’t keep his fitness and won’t be sharp for Croatia
*14 games in 2024 calendar year for RM – in the 10 games Modric appeared he played an average of 48 min
It’s like folks don’t understand they spend 6 out of 7 days training / playing games
It’s much better for Modric to play less for RM – so he can stay fresh and god willing be able to help a long stretch in Germany this summer
The more he plays for RM – the higher the work load – the greater the possibility he could get injured
Modric carried us after long domestic seasons in tournament after tournament. It’s a shame a player who has kept his skill set and fitness at his age sits on the bench. If you think this is good for a Croatia fine, but I want to see him play while he is able too.
Are you prioritizing Real Madrid over Croatia?…just so you wanna see him play while he is able to?
He has had a few off games and issues the past two tournaments, likely due to being gassed.
The media does a good job at selling the idea that Modric singlehandedly carries us, but that’s not true at all.
He’s our best player, but he’s had off games and the 2018 run to the Finals was just as much Perisic, Mandzo and Rakitic, as it was Modric.
His Japan game at the last World Cup was not good, and he made some mistakes in other games like Argentina. He was solid against Brazil, but that was a team effort with guys like Juranovic, Orsic and Petkovic really coming through for us.
I know you want to watch Modric play every week, but you’re just being selfish.
We need to “load manage” his minutes so that he’s 100 percent ready for Croatia (and ONLY Croatia).
I could give two $hits about what happens with Real Madrid’s season.
I agree.
I’ve been arguing this for years, that I don’t want him starting every club game and becoming exhausted for our tournaments (as it is beginning to show). This is a good scenario to be in for us. Modric is obviously still doing well, but playing reduced minutes. Him coming off the bench doesn’t seem to reduce his impact (which is what we want to see). This is ideal for us.
Also, I think some people are probably making too much out of Brozovic losing form by playing in Saudi Arabia. Although it is a good argument, this is still unchartered territory for many European national teams as now there are multiple teams (like Portugal, Serbia, etc.) who have key players playing in the Saudi League.
We’ll see if this affects Broz’s game, but at the same time it will probably be better than how Broz performed at the last World Cup (where he was exhausted and not 100 percent recovered from his injury and long season).
So long as there are no injuries, I am not concerned with Modric and Broz at all. Glad to see Krama, Kova and Majer playing well.
Hoping to see Sucic, Baturina and possibly Zvonarek (if he gets more minutes at Bayern) as part of the squad to learn from our veterans.
It’s great you agree with yourself, change your name next time.
He does not have to be man of the match in each game to carry the team which he indisputably does. That is not a media conspiracy. Let’s see how he plays this summer, and yeah i want to watch him play and he wants to play too. Spare me your “only Croatia” bs.
In defense of Maminjo, they were responses to two different separate posts, in the same contextual vein albeit. It was not a self-response to himself.
Yes. The way these posts are laid out on the page…sometimes you can’t tell who is responding to what.
Maminjo was responding to me (my original/first post)
Maminjo def good points
The last thing we need is Modric (and Broz) exhausted come Germany (we know Kovacic (if we need him) def won’t be exhausted given KDB is now fully back)
Who knows – maybe Modric discussed w/ RL – that he is “fine” playing less during the season thru April – as long as come May (when there are 5 LaLiga games left for RM plus any CL) that the club gives him enough minutes to ensure he is sharp for Croatia
Given they are 7 points clear of 2nd – this looks quite possible (if that’s something Modric wants – would be a fair way to “repay” him for his loyal service over the yrs) as RM will have points to spare
If he needs more top-up – there are the 2x Abu Dhabi games in March – and of course the 2 friendlies in June ahead of Germany
Modric will play what he thinks he should in the above 4 games (for Croatia) – and hopefully RM give him the minutes he “wants” come May for RM (if he wants to load-up a bit more) – to ensure he is as prepared as possible for Germany
And yes – 1000% agree – two sh*ts about seeing him play 90 min for RM every game – the only thing that matters is he is ready to go for Croatia vs. Spain come June
Sorry buddy.
I’m an “only Croatia” type of guy.
I like that he’s getting a good balance of rest and play with Real, and it’s showing in his results for them.
Real has pretty much secured first place. No need to risk injury or exhaustion just to watch your favorite player play in a few meaningless games. You can watch him in the Summer when the real games are played.
U ovom trenutku Modrić treba igrati minutažu, kao da mu treba vježba vožnja bicikla.
Is Bayern the new academy for the HNS?
https://fcbayern.com/en/news/2024/02/lovro-zvonarek-interview-want-to-make-history-croatia-youth-league#
He was good before he went to Bayern.
Slaven Belupo developed him in their youth academy, and he was already playing for their first team when Bayern bought him.
Once they put him into their Bayern reserve team, it was obvious that he was too good for that league (scoring like a dozen goals).
So they just promoted him to the Bayern first team.
Sutalo not in the lineup for Ajax against Utrecht this morning. Dutch papers reporting that he is injured but no details on the injury.
Nice assist by Sosa on the Ajax goal.
Medic is on the bench….
https://www.goalstube.online/2024/03/ajax-fc-utrecht.html?m=1
Here it is. I like the run.
Musa scores in debut:
https://www.mlssoccer.com/news/petar-musa-fc-dallas-club-record-signing-scores-in-debut
And played 90 minutes
I guess his coach mis-understood when he told the press Musa told him he needs a few training sessions to play 45-60 minutes…
The goal was called offside initially and didn’t count – went to video review and they overturned it – I know MLS want to get as many goals per game bc they want to compete with baseball – but if u look at the review – the guy that received the ball and passed it to Musa for the goal – was clearly offside (look at his shoulder / leaning forward position) when the initial ball was released
Musa was also in an offside position – I guess he doesn’t think he can get steps on MLS defenders if he starts level with them (the funny thing Musa asks the ref who was offside and says it wasn’t him – I guess he doesn’t know the rules – that he could start in an offside position – as the initial kick wasn’t to him – lol)
So not a real goal
Hopefully he can score a real goal next week
Over in the 2. Bundesliga, Igor Matanovic hit a brace for Karlsruher in a 4-0 win over Greuther Furth and reached 10 goals in 22 league appearances. The 6ft 4in Hamburg-born striker has been in good form this season. He turns 21 at the end of this month and is on loan from Eintracht Frankfurt, which signed him in 2021 until June 2026. He has a couple of caps for our U21s and I wonder if Skocic will call him up for the qualifiers later this month…
Videos of all goals he has scored this season (except for the latest 2) are available below. None of his 10 goals has been from penalties.
https://www.bundesliga.com/en/2bundesliga/player/igor-matanovic
Very nice friend
Thanks for sharing
Good size
May he become a star
Good news.
I remember him. Very tall striker, with oddly good technique for a big man. Good to see him playing and scoring regularly.
We need all the young striker prospects we can get. Hopefully one of them hits.
Anyone with links for tomorrow game between Dinamo and Osijek.
Modric benched again. Ancelotti really prefers Kroos. So where will Luka go next? I hope he stays in Europe.
yes Ancelotti is an idiot.
Five years younger. I will give the last $100 in my wrinkled wallet if any of Kroos/Camavinga/Tchouameni etc. are playing on Real or a team of similar ilk at 38. Coach is pretty much forced to play the younger guys.
benched again?
ovo je pravi potez RM. čovjek ima skoro 40 godina. I Kroos je sjajan ove sezone. u čemu je problem?
Juranovic just got his pocket picked for the 0-2. Sakes.