SPAIN
Ivan Rakitić captained Sevilla to a 4-0 win on Sunday over Real Betis, their second win in a row. Ivan picked up team high assists number four and five on the season, as he had a free kick and corner turned in. With the assists and an all-around great performance, he was named man of the match. Ivan created three chances, made three tackles, three interceptions, and drew four fouls in the convincing win, which moved Sevilla into 8th in La Liga.
Assist: 2:10, 4:38
Luka Modrić was given the day off Real Madrid as they won 5-0 over Almeria on Saturday. Real plays Galatasaray in the Champions League on Wednesday.
UKRAINE
Photo: UEFA
Darijo Srna capped off a 4-goal first half Saturday against Sevastopol with a beautiful free kick goal from 28 yards out. From dead center, Srna struck the ball over the wall and into the upper right corner of the net. The “Beckham of the Balkans” still has it as he nearly scored a free kick against Iceland this past Tuesday. The match would end 4-0 in Shakhtar’s favor, giving them a three point cushion atop the Ukrainian Premier League. Srna played the entire match while Eduardo remained on the bench.
Srna goal @ 0:50
Nikola Kalinić came into the match in the 65th minute for Dnipro in a 3-1 win over Illichivets while Ivan Strinić nurses a leg injury. His return has not yet been announced. Ognjen Vukojević played the full match for Dynamo Kyiv in a 3-0 win over Hoverla with Domagoj Vida coming into the match in the 44th minute.
ENGLAND
Dejan Lovren was sorely missed in the Southampton back line Saturday as he sat out the big match against league leaders Arsenal due to an illness. Lovren played the last few minutes of the game versus Iceland on Tuesday but picked up a bug when he returned to England. He is only expected to miss this one match. Without Lovren, Southampton could not contain French striker Oliver Giroud who scored twice in the match for a 2-0 win. It was only Southampton’s second loss of the season as they slip to fifth on the Premier League table.
Nikica Jelavić once again rode the pine for Everton as Romelu Lukaku scored two more goals in a 3-3 draw against Liverpool on Saturday. The two late goals by the Belgian striker should have won the game for Everton in this derby match but Daniel Sturridge netted an equalizer in the 89th minute. Who knows how much longer Jelavić can take this from the sidelines. Does he dare ask for a transfer during the winter window?
Niko Kranjčar got the start for QPR on Saturday in a 1-0 win over Charlton Athletic. Kranjčar did not manage a shot on goal before he was taken off in the 64th minute. With the win, QPR are tied with Burnley and Leicester City for top spot in the English second division.
Germany
Photo: Bayern
Bayern Munich continued to steamroll past the competition by hammering Borussia Dortmund 3-0 in front of a disappointing 80,645 at Signal Iduna Park. Super Mario Mandžukić started but didn’t last long as he was subbed out in the 56th minute for former Dortmund striker Mario Gotze. Mandžukić finished the match with three shots and was caught offside three times.
Photo: REUTERS/Morris Mac Matzen
Wolfsburg will be kicking themselves for giving up a lead and failing to convert multiple chances in a 1-1 draw at Nurnberg. The draw snapped a four match winning streak and kept Wolfsburg fifth on the Bundesliga table. Former Dinamo Zagreb striker, Ivica Olić, started and played 77 minutes in the draw. Ivica came close twice in the first half with a header saved by the Nurnberg keeper and a strike off the post. Ivan Perišić also started and played 77 minutes in the draw. The former Hajduk Split prospect finished the match with three shots and some nice runs down the left flank.
Olić came close with a header
PHOTO: European cy
Former Dinamo Zagreb captain, Milan Badelj, put an end to his scoreless streak with an equalizing goal against Hannover 96 on Sunday. The Croatian international started and played the full 90 minutes in a 3-1 win for Hamburg. Milan was in the right place at the right time to volley a lose ball into the back of the net as the Hannover keeper was off his line. Should Badelj be in Niko Kovac’s plans for the World Cup in Brazil this summer?
Badelj goal
Italy
PHOTO: inter
Former Dinamo Zagreb prospect, Mateo Kovačić, continues to come off the bench at Inter Milan as the 19-year-0ld midfielder came on in the 56th minute for Inter in a 1-1 draw against Bologna on Sunday. Mateo failed to help Inter find the game winner and finished the game without a shot. Inter enjoyed 64% possession and finished the match with 22 shots.
PHOTO: AP/Marco Vasini
Marko Livaja started and played 68 minutes for Atalanta in a 2-0 loss to Sassuolo on Sunday. The former Hajduk Split striker couldn’t get anything going against a pesky Sassuolo defense and finished the match with only one shot on goal.
Photo: AP
Genoa withstood 30 shots and a missed penalty kick by AC Milan to register a 1-1 come from behind draw at San Siro on Sunday. Former Dinamo Zagreb midfielder, Šime Vrsaljko, started and played the full 90 minutes for Genoa in the draw. Vrsaljko made a nice run and was brought down in the box in the ninth minute of play for a penalty kick which would later prove to be the equalizing goal for Genoa. The 21-year-old, Croatian international has played well for Genoa and has drawn interest from multiple teams around top leagues in Europe. It will be interesting to see if Šime stays in Genoa this winter.
Šime Vrsaljko brought down in the box for a penalty kick.
Ante Rebić, Igor Bubnjić, Ivan Kelava, Manuel Pamić, Josip Radošević and Tin Jedvaj all looked on from the bench over the weekend.
FRANCE
Danjiel Subašić made three saves for AS Monaco in their 1-0 win over Nantes. Subašić kept his fifth clean sheet of the season, making a couple big saves to earn the three points. Monaco remain third in Ligue 1 through 14 games with 29 points.
RUSSIA
Stipe Pletikosa started between the pipes for Rostov as they took down league leaders Zenit St. Petersburg 2-0 on Friday. It was a big match for Stipe, with Zenit dominating possession and shooting.
Vedran Ćorluka played the full match for Lokomotiv Moscow in their 1-0 win over rivals Dinamo Moscow. Vedran picked up a yellow card in the 36th minute as they were victorious for the 11th time this season. The three points, accompanied with Zenit coming up short moves Lokomotiv into a tie for the top of the Russian Premier League.
Next Matches:
Wednesday, 11/27
Bayern München at CSKA Moskva(Champions League), Galatasaray at Real Madrid(Champions League), Real Sociedad at Shakhtar Donetsk(Champions League),
Friday, 11/29
Hamburger SV at Wolfsburg,
Saturday, 11/30
Stoke City at Everton, Fulham at West Ham United, Eintracht at Bayern München, Torino at Genoa, Real Valladolid at Real Madrid, Rennes at Monaco,
Sunday, 12/1
Southampton at Chelsea, Roma at Atalanta, Sampdoria at Internazionale, Udinese at Juventus, Sevilla at Granada, Dnipro at Zorya,
~Ante Kvartuč and Denis Svirčić reporting from sunny Southern California, Zach Gilfix reporting from Minneapolis, MN
http://www.24sata.hr/nogomet/hrvatska-dijaspora-zeli-donirati-novac-i-platiti-kaznu-simunicu-342670
majstorski!
SMM completely missed a tap in and had a decent overhead volley.
seemed like a pretty normal week from our boys and a few nice positives… seems like srna is picking up a bit
not too shabby at all from badelj
http://i.minus.com/ibvGnV8Q1z5WoM.gif
anyone find a link to badelj’s goal?
Sevilla – Betis 4:0,
2x asistent Rakitić!!
@chupe
meant you should repost the comment for everyone to see
@chupe
good post, you repost this under the newest thread re: Croatian patriot
Croatia my goal that i as a fan want is atleast round of 16, anything after is a bonus ride for me.
Lets hope Niko Kovac calls the right 23 to Brazil.He makes us a respectable team unit and idemo,ZA DOM>>>>
Nice job torcida today going crzy with Za dom spremni uboj uboj and ajmo ustase and tko nes skace pravoslavac jejejee.
@Ziva
Re: Mandzo being invisible without service…
Not true.
Yes, he’s a lot less effective, but he is still very useful and still better than our remaining strikers regardless. The Iceland goal he scored in the 2nd leg was not a result of good service, it was the result of him knowing where to be. He does this often,
He is also a tireless worker and knows how to play a defensive role as well (look at his Euro2012 game against Spain). Actually speaking of Euro2012, only one of his three goals were a result of good service in the box.
Yes, we are going to miss Mandzo for one game in the World Cup, but I think that we still need to focus on improving our attack on the wings moreso than finding his one-game replacement. His replacement (whoever it is) will benefit just the same from attacking wing players. But we do need to try out Rebic, Santini and other decent strikers not named Eduardo/Kalinic/Jelavic in that role.
too funny regarding Tottenham
my have they fallen
ummmm, we do need work up front. Without any quality service Mandza is invisible at times. Plus, don’t forget he will be suspended for at least the opening game of the WC and possibly the second game.
Some one needs to teach porcelain doll Bogut how to fight………look a this…….http://thebiglead.com/2013/11/24/the-warriors-and-trailblazers-got-into-a-bit-of-a-skirmish-last-night-video/
If there are any positions that need tinkering before the World Cup, it’s our wings.
We’re pretty set up top with Mandzukic, and in central midfield with Modric/Rakitic. Our back four, no matter how much we tinker with it, will probably not impact us as much (unless we do drastic things).
Our wings, however, will need some tinkering in these next friendly games, and I highly doubt that Vrsaljko won’t be tried out in some friendly game combinations (I’m surprised he didn’t play in these last two games over Ilicevic or Perisic).
I expect to see some combinations of Pranjic, Perisic, Rebic, Vrsaljko, Ilicevic, and Srna on our left and right sides in the next few games. Kovac would be stupid not to try it.
In other news, Tottenham got SMOKED 6 – 0 by Man City. WOW.
.
Ziva Srbija? More like Krepala Srbija govno.
Big Joe sends his regards after knocking your ass out of the world cup.
Za Dom.
will vrsaljko get a fair shake at the friendlies before the tourney? i haven’t seen him play but he does seem to be getting regular minutes in italy and doesn’t seem to be dissapointing…
i know he has played for us but not a lot… does he have what it takes? he would appear more ready then even say radosevic? with the playing time he gets
i honestly believe rebic will come out at the world cup and will get him and croatia noticed… again im not a soccer genius but he seems like a more talented olic type player. athletic, skillful, and appears like he has everyone’s favourite phrase heart… he will definately be hungry
shit if he can score even one goal for us at world cup… that might be the difference between us going through to second round….
LOL at Dortmond
Jelavic needs to secure a loan move in January to get more minutes and regain his form. Otherwise his place in the WC squad is in jeopardy.
Perhaps he can return to Belgium or Austria, it would give him a chance to re-polish his boots and find his scoring touch.
Southampton found out today what happens when Lovren is out of the line-up–a 2-0 loss to Arsenal.
We have options at left back now with milic and pamic starting to play reguarly
Just read on goal.com that Vrsaljko had a good game for Genoa, and he drew the penalty for the game tying goal against Milan. We need our guys to play productive minutes from now till June, while hopefully staying healthy. We need depth in a long tournament.
Also, Pranjic.
If he can regain his form, he will be a good option for left wing.
Jm,
I agree with your comment. I hope Kovacic, Rebic and Perisic take their game to the next level for Brazil. I think Lovren has already done that.
you know what Srna should mimic when he scores a goal? Dancing/listening to turbo serbo music.
Jelavic under Moise was played like a battering ram and used like a rented mule.
First in the SPL and then in the EPL, years of wear and tear grinds you down physically and psychology.
Jebi ga . It is a moot point. I just want to ensure Svi Hrvati get a fair shake in every “basement” and corner of the world.
Rebic is a horse and will provide the extra dynamic to attack this World Cup. With him and Kovacic we will have two dynamic players upfront. Need a third winger to compliment. Maybe Haliliovic can mature and harmonize with how Kovac is running things OR Perisic can get himself into rhythm.
Rebic
Kovacic
Halilovic Modric Perisic
Rakitic
Pranjic Lovren Corluka Srna
Pleti
Spremni
Need to have young legs going into the World Cup.
Nice crack by Srna on the free kick goal. Did anyone else see him motion like he was drinking a beer after the goal. My guess is we are gonna see this celebration from some of our guys from now through the world cup. Of course, hopefully the goals come. so we can see it
Burned out?
No, sorry but silly comment! He’s lost his form and hasn’t been able to get it back. When you compete for a job/position you aren’t often afforded too many opportunities at the expense of your team, to blame his poor form on Moyes is ludicrous. Why look for an excuse when most players play the same amount or more than Jelavic did?
@jm
Well said!
If we can get some stand out performances from any of those kids in June that would help us immensely in making the knockout rounds.
I agree with Matesic and Everton’s playing style under Moyes. Plenty of strikers burnt out at Everton.
They were never a high goal scoring team under Moyes.
Jelavic needs a reboot and a change of scenery.
He is not “shit”, but he is no Suker either.
Additionally, Jelavic scored a decent amount of “important” goals for Everton.
@MatesicMethod
I found it a little odd as to how Jelavic lost his scoring touch. He did great for Everton when he first arrived. His first goal vs Tottenham was great.
As for Rebic, I’ve watched a few of his highlights and he’s quite impressive. He needs to be getting more playing time in the senior squad in my opinion.
@Matesic…..obviously you do, considering you replied. Right, they ran him into ground. Would love to hear this explanation.
Now that we have qualified, no meaningful game in a long time. The question weekend to weekend is what will the team look like going into the world cup. The main hope for me weekend to weekend will be the developments of kovacic, lovren, perisic, and rebic. The other senior players pretty much are what they are, and I don’t expect too much evolution there. But to give us a dark horse chance of making some noise in the tournament, improvement for the team has to come from those guys.
@ Ziva
Remember when anyone gave a shit about your opinion !
Pusti ga.
Jelavic got run into the ground by Moyes and talentless Everton .
Now Martinez has bought talented, skilled players and Lukaku is benefitting from offensive system.
Rebic will become our Ronaldo !
Remember when some people earlier in the season were saying Lukaku wasn’t as good as Jelavic. Yeah, that was funny!