by croatiaweek
September 5, 2025
in
Andej Kramarić (Screenshot)
Croatia continued their 2026 FIFA World Cup qualifying campaign with a narrow 1-0 victory over the Faroe Islands in Tórshavn on Friday night.
With Joško Gvardiol, Mateo Kovačić, Lovro Majer and Josip Stanišić all unavailable, and Luka Modrić and Ivan Perišić starting the match on the bench, Andrej Kramarić was handed the captain’s armband in what was a new-look side.
The Faroes, buoyed by a home crowd, created a couple of dangerous openings early on, but goalkeeper Dominik Livaković stood firm with a pair of sharp saves.
Croatia took the lead in the 31st minute. Kristijan Jakić delivered a cross from the right flank, Ante Budimir flicked it on to the path of Kramarić who headed in from close range.
The hosts came out strongly after the restart and again looked threatening on the counter-attack.
Dalić introduced Modrić and Perišić, but Croatia struggled to carve out clear chances and they looked out of sorts.
With plenty of space left at the back, the Faroes continued to look lively in transition, though they were unable to find a way past Livaković.
It was far from a memorable performance, but Croatia left Tórshavn with maximum points and their third successive win of the campaign.
Dalić’s men had earlier recorded a 7-0 away victory over Gibraltar and a 5-1 win against Czechia, and now remain unbeaten in Group L.
Next Up: Montenegro in Zagreb
Croatia return home on Monday night when they host Montenegro at Maksimir Stadium in Zagreb, where they will look to maintain their perfect start to qualifying.
You can see the only goal of the game HERE