Luka Modrić and Luka Sučić both got the start Saturday as Real Sociedad lost 2-0 to Real Madrid. Sučić was given his 1st La Liga start and nearly broke the goal post in the 25′ when he sent a rocket shot from 19 yards out that rattled off the upper-V. Sučić later placed a perfect left-footed should that beat Courtois off the far post. Sučić could have easily had two goals in his first La Liga start against Real Madrid. Imagine that!
Luka Sučić stats vs. Real Madrid: 76 minutes, 49 touches, 32/38 accurate passes (84%), 2 big chances created, 2 shots off the woodwork. Not too shabby for the 22 year-old.
Modrić was given a 7.5 grade for his efforts from ManagingMadrid as he “Put in a tremendous amount of work over a 90 minute shift. Gave the team the composure they lacked when playing out of the back. Finished the game with 3 key passes including a perfect free kick into the box that Rudiger latched on to but failed to score.”
Mateo Kovačić got the start for Manchester City but was taken off at halftime while Joško Gvardiol came off the bench to play the entire 2nd half. Manchester City came from behind to defeat Brentford 2-1. Kova received a 6/10 grade from 90min.com as he “Spread play well when Brentford were looking to shut up shop and protect their early lead. Like Lewis was taken off at the break.” Gvardiol received a 7/10 grade for his 45 minutes on the pitch as “City were hardly troubled after his introduction at the break.”
Andrej Kramarić assisted in Hoffenheim’s 4-1 loss to German champions Bayer Leverkusen Saturday.Krama now has four goals and one assist to his name in the first three Bundesliga matches of the season. He’s 33 years old.
17 year-old Luka Vušković scored his 2nd Belgian league goal of the season (in 7 matches), heading home a bouncing ball inside the box. Vušković is currently on loan at Westerlo from Hajduk via a Tottenham Spurs future sale. He is not able to play in the Premier League until he turns 18 in 2025. He’s a center-back.
21 year-old striker Igor Matanović came off the bench in the 74′ for Eintracht Frankfurt in a 2-1 victory over Wolfsburg Saturday.
The pass back to Sucic was a beauty. Who is that guy? Let’s get him some Croatian citizen papers . LOL. Unlucky but Sucic showing some good stuff in the Spanish league that is top shelf.
If only Sucic were playing horseshoes, a lot of ringers. Hope he stays healthy moving forward, shots are bound to start falling in if so.
Orsic is subbed off at HT
Add context please
@A Tin U
Matanovic needs more playing time. His situation at Eintracht reminds me of Musa when the latter was still with Benfica, being the second choice striker and unable to break into the first team (until Goncalo Ramos was sold). I’m worried that the same thing is going to play out with Matanovic at Frankfurt… this will stall his development which will of course be bad for the repka.
Did you happen to watch the whole game? I’m wondering whether Matanovic can ever measure up to first choice striker Ekitike? From what I can tell, Igor is stronger in the air but Ekitike is quicker and more skillful.
Any thoughts?
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The picture at the top of this article, with both Lukas contesting for their respective teams in La Liga… man I just find it profoundly beautiful. Thanks CroatianSports for putting out such a pleasant image.
All that is missing is the Croatian Sports photo credit lol.
@Bartolec1912
Don’t know the game as well as you and the other regulars on this listserv, never played it at a high level. I enjoy the insights and observations of the rest of you.
But I see your point. I went back and carefully watched the game, I had previously focused on the part after Igor came onto the field…… I think you have assessed it exactly right. Ekitike is young, quick, and very skilled. Great passer. He gels well with Omar Marmoush on the attack for Frankfurt. He is definitely an obstacle to Igor getting to start regularly.
I would guess there is a reasonable possibility, if Igor develops well, for Frankfurt to eventually pocket some big bucks via a transfer of Ekitike to a Premier League team—he is probably that good—and then elevating Igor to number one striker….but that is looking down the road. Until then, Igor may well have a problem similar to Musa.
A Tin U
Erlic pongracic pasalic on the bench. Sosa just got off the bench.
WATCH: Luka Modric’s Performance Vs Real Sociedad
https://www.managingmadrid.com/videos/2024/9/15/24245271/watch-luka-modrics-performance-vs-real-sociedad
A few interesting games today to report on. I watched the entire game in the Belgium league between Westerlo and Anderlecht. Frigan played up front for Westerlo subbed off late and Vuskovic played the whole game for them at right back. It appears to me Westerlo plays a system that has three defenders….
Vuskovic scored a huge goal, a header, to give Westerlo a 2-1 lead, the game finished 2-2. He looks like an emerging leader on this team, and other than one error in his own end that created a good scoring opportunity for the opposition, he played very well. I know it is early but I concur with those who say we may have a very good (possibly great) defender emerging here….he moved the ball well well and sees and hits the open player with crisp passes…..
I also watched all of Matanovic’s game for Frankfurt against Wolfsburg in the Bundesliga. He came on in the 74th minute and had one glorious opportunity in the 93rd minute during extra time, but the well-struck ball hit a defender’s knee. He just couldn’t finish it off…a little like his game against Poland. The announcer for this game, who seemed knowledgeable about the Bundesliga and soccer in Germany, provided some background on Matanovic for viewers and described him as a (and I quote) “huge talent.”
For Croatian fans in Canada, just a tip that it might be worthwhile to consider DAZN this year. I think it is $199 for the year.
First, you get Champions League on DAZN and with Dinamo qualifying for the Champions League this year you get at least six Dinamo games in the current format and a chance to watch Baturina and Co go up against some top European teams.
Second, you also get Nations League games. So….It almost feels like that is already worth the price of admission.
Added to that, of course, you can also see Modric, Kova, Gvardiol, in Champions League….
You get Europa League, so you can also see Luka Sucic (Real Sociedad) Sutalo (Ajax) and Krama (Hoffenheim)….
On top of all that you also get all the Bundesliga games so you can see Vidovic (Mainz), Stanislav, Matanovic, Majer, Krama….week in and week out…
Then as an added bonus thrown in, they have the Belgium League, and so you get to watch Vuskovic’s games for Westerlo……
Looks like it might be a good year to purchase DAZN…..I throw that out there if anyone hasn’t considered it or looked into it before….hit their web site and see if it makes sense for you.
A Tin U
Do you work for them? DAZN is overpriced — they have every NFL game so cater to that market — and their customer service dep’t is borderline non-existent.
Hi gbvh. No, I’m a teacher. LOL. No revenues or royalties coming in from sports media…..I just got it a few days ago and I enjoyed watching Vuskovic and Matanovic for the first time this weekend. I will watch Mainz today to see if Vidovic is playing. I had not fully connected the dots as to how much Croatian soccer it provides. When I got it I had not realized they have the Belgium league, that was a nice bonus….. I agree with you there is a lot of other stuff on there, and I don’t have any interest in that. The other problem with these services is they change what they offer. I have FUBO but it seems they dropped the Eredivisie this season which was disappointing as I used to watch Sutalo and Ivanusec and even Halilovic last year. Instead they added some league from Latin America which I don’t want to follow. So you can get burned…..I was just throwing it out there for those who might not be aware, that it looks like this service MIGHT work out reasonably well for our Croatian nogomet fans based in Canada for the 2024/25 season. Cheers.
I agree that DAZN is worth it just for the Champions league and Nations league games. Bundesliga and others is also a good bonus.
The only way to get a half decent price at DAZN is to commit/pay for a full year. But there is next to nothing to watch on that channel during the summer months. If you would like to pay month by month, it’s $34.99+ per month … the price just keeps going up and they used to have Serie A/PL but no longer do.
And from what I read, they are now allowing only two “users” at a time and both have to be in the same household. I’m not sure if that’s correct. I got month by month last year for Croatian Nations League games so my dad could watch. From what I read, he would no longer be able to do that (he has NOVA TV now so it doesn’t matter, but point being)…
Whereas we’ve had FUBO for years and split it between a few people…it’s not even 10 bucks a month each.
(Also most IPTV packages will have all the Champions League games, La Liga games on ESPN+ and lots of Bundesliga games too….and is dirt cheap.)
I just swallow the annual cost. I get that its not the cheapest option, but I like the flexibility to watch on my laptop, desktop, phone, or TV…or to rewatch games when I have time. Most games are like 245pm or 3pm in the middle of the week so I can watch wherever is more convenient. My stari uses my subscription at his house too. I wasn’t aware of the one household rule…it seems to work for us in different locations, unless this is a new rule. He has Croatian TV at home, so he’s been watching the Nations League on NOVA this year.
Man does sucic ever have a rocket tho. Only a matter of time
This kid very well may be very legit
Gives the midfield this offensive danger that will make countries put more pressure on him and give luka and kova more space
Does a kova defensive mid and two Lukas work on paper?
https://croatiansports.com/croatia-vs-poland-player-ratings/#comments/511458
@Maminjo, thanks for the info! I’ve also wondered why Marco didn’t get a transfer. I think a move to Mainz would have been very suitable for him… such a shame it didn’t work out. Hopefully Marco continues to attract interest from other clubs or that Mainz will come back for him another time.
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Real Sociedad v Real Madrid: Luka Sucic also hit the post early in the 2nd half; probably should have scored on this occasion and put his team 1-0 up.
-Sucic almost scores against Madrid with a rocket of a shot but it hit the post
-Modric almost assists from a freekick but the header was saved