For the second time in three weeks, Hoffenheim striker Andrej Kramarić scored a stunning free kick for his club. Kramarić got the start Saturday and played the full 90 minutes against Freiburg, burying a 25-yard free kick in the 57th minute. Freiburg would level the game nine minutes later through a penalty to force a 1-1 draw but Hoffenheim’s Croatian is heating up just at the right time; four months from the World Cup. Hoffenheim are currently sitting seven points behind a Champions League spot in a packed Bundesliga table.
Kramarić Free Kick Goal
After picking up a red card for Besiktas midweek in Champions League against Bayern Munich, Domagoj Vida scored a flying header off a corner kick in the 49th minute Sunday to level the game versus Fenerbahce. Besiktas would score two more for a 3-1 win which would propel them to third place in Turkey; only three points behind leaders Galatasaray. Vida has been known for his header goals off of set pieces and he will gladly add this one to his collection. Expect Vida in the Starting XI for Croatia this summer.
Vida scores off the corner
Luka Modrić picked up a minor hamstring injury last week and took the weekend off as Real Madrid defeated Alaves 4-0 Saturday. Modrić is slated for a March return but may miss the March 6th Champions League match against PSG in Paris. Real Madrid won the first leg 3-1. Mateo Kovačić got the start in place of Modrić and played 73 minutes in the win. Ivan Rakitić and Barcelona remain seven points in front of second place Atletico Madrid after their 6-1 victory over Girona. Rakitic played 77 minutes. Šime Vrsaljko played the full match for Atletico in a huge 5-2 road win over Sevilla. Sevilla scored two late goals in the last 10 minutes with Vrsaljko’s run at a World Cup starting spot looking extremely promising.
Guys, I have already mentioned it. Pjaca suffering slight complications to his knee. He is not playing alot if minutes, simply because he is not 100%
^^^
yeah he’s got to come back slowly
Razbijac you are correct sir…. he needs more pitch time and should have moved to a club where that would have been guaranteed.
Having torn my ACL but not nearly as serious as Pjaca’s knee gernade incident, I’m sorta of happy to see him come back slowly.
Hope he gets full pitch time in Miami and I’ll be watching him play in Dallas!
@ anon and Crnkovic
I agree with your comments on Pjaca. But when a player goes out on loan, it’s supposed to be to get more playing time…..
And at this point, I can’t help but think Pjaca was duped into moving to Schalke. Otherwise, how else were they able to lure him from Juventus?
With the dust settled, Schalke’s coach’s intentions are now clear: Pjaca was brought in too add reinforcements to the bench. No way at this point in the season, with Schalke vying for CL spot, would the coach have Pjaca start over his established starters–especially with Pjaca leaving in a coupla months.
Marko really should have considered his options more carefully, and selected a club where he would be an automatic first team starter. This would likely be a mid-table to relegation threatened club.
Agreed on Pjaca Crnkovic…. in addition, Pjaca is on loan to Schalke for this season and set to return to Juve in the summer. Pjaca will not receive any favorable treatment.
Look at whilshere at arsenal. Biggest English talent since gascoinge. Heaps of injury issues. Eventually goes to Bournemouth on loan, does nothing, but SLOWLY gets fit, comes back to arsenal everyone says he’ll never be the same, he’s lost a yard of pace etc etc look at him now. Back to being arsenals best player by a mile. Because THAT IS TALENT. Of course schalke coach doesn’t mention pjaca as a forward he trusts. That would put unnecessary pressure on pjaca that wouldn’t help him or the team. The schalke coach would have to be retard to list pjaca as a name he is depending on at this stage. Some people here need an IQ test. THINK!!!!!
Ok here’s a question. If Lucas moura was croatian would you take him to the World Cup?riding pine at tottenham, 5th in the premier league, after a big money mve from PSG. Some of you guys think this is a cake walk? @the truth, you’re the biggest homer out there. You say all this stuff to cover yourself because you’re scared that we will lose and you’re gonna cry. So you pour cold water on us. But I’m not scared of losing. I’m brave enough to believe. Pjaca is a talent, at some point he’ll click at the right time, I wouldn’t bet against it happening when we need at the WC. Of course you take him to the World Cup. Look what he did against spain and Portugal at the last euros. He’s been INJURED. You get that INJURED, that’s why he is being nursed back to health. Ffs get an IQ test truth troll 😉
@BZ
HA!
Zing.
If someone really cares about drazen they can find the article without it being given to them
@The truth- i hate dreadful hyperbole too.
http://www.espn.com/nba/story/_/id/22590062/zach-lowe-drazen-petrovic-lasting-basketball-legacy-nba
It’s called copy/paste Truth.
Ok article on espn about drazen
Written by zach lowe who has a Croatian wife so he somewhat gets the area
A bit too much hyperbole youth
Troll
I might actually put pee ass a in my cro starTing line up given how dreadful everyone else has been
Perisic kalinic kramaric
. Modric rakitic
. Badelj
Strinic lovren vida vrsaljko
That team looks incredibly weak unfortunately. Find me a guy there that has been in form for a month
Truth Troll again with the childish name calling. Save it for your 4th grade classmates Sine
To be honest the WC is 4 months away so who gives a flying masta-wank about current form?
In far more important news, it seems the 2018 world cup video game is going to be a download for FIFA 18, and all the teams will be licensed so finally Hrvatska will properly be in FIFA once again – yay ! 😀
@The Truth- I am shocked that the Schalke coach doesn’t
@Anon-my bad, the awkward feeling when you misunderstand Cigan’s post. 🙂
That said, it was calling out Kalinic & Mandzukic, which is ok, however Mandzu plays winning soccer so I don’t think he deserves it. Kalinic needed a call out.
If the world cup was tomorrow id take rebic and livaja over pjaca
The schalke coach in recent interviews listed three forwards as the ones he trusts….marko pee-ass-a was not one of them
So unfortunately for pee-ass-a , this does not look like the opportunity he was sold on. A shame because his production has been solid so far on his recovery road
What do you think?
Should i stick with pee-ass-a or move to something like pee-ass-on-the-bench???
It’s not fantasy soccer. It’s the World Cup real thing
Try to remember guys. It’s football. Take bentaleb at schalke, he couldn’t get into the spurs team despite his obvious talent, he went to schalke and was a revelation wearing the number 10 shirt and becoming the main man in midfield, recently his form has dropped and found himself out of the team, scored the winner this weekend. There are lots of good players all of them go through ups and downs. Only world class talents become sure starters in top teams. The point is national teams are just that “teams” they have to have their own identity and system. Just because a player is not firing for club doesn’t mean they can’t produce for NT and vice versa. The vast majority of our players have a good attitude and great talent, it all depends whether the atmosphere and tactics are right for the vatreni. It’s not about their club form. Goals in the bundesliga or serie a don’t count at the World Cup. Look at roger milla at 1990 World Cup. He had retired altogether from professional football and still ended up as one of the very best player at the World Cup. Just be patient and believe in the guys. Plus like I said before, the extra determination and joy of playing for the NT counts for more than form leading at the World Cup. Plenty of top players in top form for their clubs will flop at the World Cup. Form and club status guarantee nothing. It’s a separate team in a separate tournament. It’s not a computer game
***my bad, Pjaca didn’t get off the bench this weekend
Balic and Jedvaj with rare starts this weekend. Jedvaj looked okay but still a bit rusty. Pjaca came off the bench for the 2nd week in a row.
Does anyone know what’s the deal w/ Vlasic?
@BZ my bAd nyigga
@BZ
You felt that @Cigan was saying that Budimir scored more goals than both Mandzukic and Kalinic this round even though Mandzukic didn’t play. I believe he meant the season thus far, in which case it is true, Budimir has more goals than both those guys.
Why do you believe that stating a fact is calling Mandzukic out?
pjaca is injured, still sore. I am sure Juve & Schalke are both wanting him to rest.
Strinic is the pretty much the only guy who is plastered to the bench, because of his bad play.
this would be my preferred lineup as of now…
……………..Kramaric……………..
Perisic…….Modric………Rakitic
……….Badelj…….Kovacic………
Strinic…Vida…Lovren…Vrsaljko
……………..Subasic………………..
And right now Santini and Budimir have scored more goals this season than Mandzukic and Kalinic…go figure!
And things just seem to go from bad to worse for Marko Pjaca! He moves in Schalke in the hopes of starting only to end up on the bench again. He should have selected a mid-table club that’s looking to improve, which would provide him with more minutes.
Here’s my line up for now, based upon form and who’s available for selection:
(4-4-1-1) Subasic–Jedvaj, Lovren, Vida, Strinic–Vrsajko, Badelj, Rakitic, Perisic–Modric–Kramaric
This line up deploys our 4 best passers/crossers of the ball in midfield: Modric, Rakitic, Vrsajko, and Persic. That’s plenty of creative juice to tee up Kramaric.
@anon-We know who you are. Awkward moment when you call out Mandzukic for playing winning soccer.
@Goku-the truth and I talked about Brekalo’s goal at length in the previous post (on friday.)
………….Kramaric…..Marko Simic………..
….Vrsaljko……….Modric………..Halilovic…
……………..Badelj………..Rakitic……………..
..…….Vida………Lovren……..Corluka……
………….……Lovre Kalinic……………….
Perisic may be overrated for the club but has flopped ever since Euro, there isn’t anyone who can be as prolific as MarkoSimic recently, and we don’t need Bundesliga bench warmers right here.
Brekalo scored for wolfsburg, surprised no on mentioned it
Glad Vida scored! That dude is a champ, love his play for us!
@BZ
The awkward moment when you find out Mandzukic has played a game more than Budimir already, and Budimir still has more goals playing for the team that’s fourth from bottom.
Simic also scored for SPAL!
Cigan- that awkward moment when you call out Mandzu for not scoring on a day he did not play (Juve’s game was postponed.)
Thought Kalinic played well as a sub today. Fantastic runs, and a great assist.
He’s talking about Ante Budimir.
He’s not that good. But he’s a bit younger, so he might be an option off the bench for us in the future.
who’s the random croat sorry?
that awkward moment when some random croat in Serie A who no one has ever heard of has more goals than both mandzu and kalinic
#troll #4th grader
Marko pjaca, continuing to build his expertise on German wood. Between him and rogs experience, their bench making company will be unmatched
#should’ve_stayed_at_dinamo
#is_robert_muric_alive?
Not surprising as you never get a lot of things… maybe even most things!!
I never get the appeal to the countries to naturalize a person with no connection to the country just to get an individual medal
I am more receptive to it in team sports. For example, naturalizing one Brazilian on the soccer team so the other 22 can feel good and all of Croatia feels good about Croatians winning as a result
I was about to say, did he swap because Slovenia is more concerned with winter olympics than us etc? So his parentage is all Croat but he became a Slovenian citizen i take it? ah well, kinda shitty
Slovenia offered Fak better training facilities so he decided to represent them. Fair enough in my opinion.
He’s still a Croat though. The way I look at it is that a Croat won a medal representing Slovenia, I got no problem with that.
Big Sam is old school stale English football. Hoof it long and get big guys on the end of it.
Everton should be so much better.
@Soul Champ- It is easy. Sit Brozo and start Kovacic, using similar lineup we used in game 1 vs Greece.
Rakitic plays deep/holding
Modric plays attacking mid
Kovacic can do what Brozo did so well vs Greece but add the potential of a Kostelic-style slalom run here and there.
@Everton fans- Big Sam screwing the pooch treating Vlasic like Balkan Dirt. Big Sam got Balkan bum rushed today with another scoreless effort.
What the FAK?
Fakking PEDER !
@ Real Crodrid
Kovačić speed dribble is iLLmatic.
Dalić needs to find a role for Mateo.
Shut the F up truth troll.
Nobody wants you here
Well looks like I’m right again
I was first to recognize kramaric as a me first guy and was scolded by the crowd over how i could say such things
Soon enough his teammates and coach come out with the same complaints
I also billed kramaric as a serviceable player and that he should start over mandzukic… Was proven right with both his play at hofdenheim and the repka
Razbajic, Rakitic is amazing at free kicks.
@Razbijac- if we can ever get the refs to call a foul in a big tournament.
Who in their right mind would go from representing Croatia, to switching over to Slovenia???? Why did Fak do that?
Also, I think we found our Free Kick Specialist….Kramaric scores on another free kick!
Having a set piece expert on the pitch is vital, as we would then be able to take advantage of set piece situations resulting from fouls received.
Really hoping Modric’s muscle injury in the biceps femoris of the right leg, is no big deal. On the brightside, Kovacic stepping up.
Me first Kramaric puts Hoffenheim on his back again. Saves them from bad home loss with their lone goal.
@Maminjo-People used to call him Fakking Jakov
Well, Jakov Fak won a silver medal.
Not sure if anyone remembers him, but he was Croatia’s flagbearer in the 2010 Olympics when he won us a Bronze medal in the biathlon.
He’s represented Slovenia ever since (even though neither he nor his parents are Slovenian).
Looks like we didn’t get any medals this winter olympics – oh well! The Kostelic family were kinda an anomaly for us i guess!