Croatia head coach Slaven Bilić announced the squad list he’s counting on for the upcoming Nations League fixtures in September and October.
Croatia have four competitive matches in the space of 11 days ahead of them, and head coach Bilić will be relying on the following players for this “campaign”:
“Summer has passed, that period where I did a lot of thinking, a lot of talking. The time to gather has come, and I think we’re ready now. I talked a lot with the players, watched, thought it over, and arrived at the final list. This is a specific situation — it’s the first time we’ve had four Nations League matches in around ten days. I don’t want this to disrupt my work. We’ve gone with 23 + 3.”
Player list
GOALKEEPERS: Dominik Livaković (Barcelona), Dominik Kotarski (Dinamo), Ivor Pandur (Rangers)
DEFENDERS: Joško Gvardiol (Manchester City), Josip Juranović (Union Berlin), Josip Šutalo (Lazio), Luka Vušković (Brighton), Ivan Smolčić (Como), Josip Stanišić (Bayern), Martin Erlić (Midtjylland)
MIDFIELDERS: Luka Modrić (Milan), Mateo Kovačić (Manchester City), Mario Pašalić (Atalanta), Nikola Vlašić (Torino), Petar Sučić (Inter), Luka Sučić (Real Sociedad), Josip Mišić (Dinamo), Martin Baturina (Como)
FORWARDS: Ivan Perišić (PSV), Andrej Kramarić (Hoffenheim), Ante Budimir (Osasuna), Igor Matanović (Freiburg), Franjo Ivanović (Lens), Dion Drena Beljo (Dinamo), Marco Pašalić (Orlando City), Petar Musa (Dallas FC)
ON STANDBY: Karlo Letica (Luzern), Marin Pongračić (Fiorentina), Kristijan Jakić (Augsburg), Nikola Moro (Bologna), Lovro Majer (AEK), Toni Fruk (Rijeka)
Bilić’s debut on September 26th
The big news of the weekend just gone is that Luka Modrić has confirmed he will continue playing for Croatia.
Luka Modrić has made 202 appearances for Croatia to date, and will now work with Slaven Bilić again after 14 years.
The squad list also features some new names, while some players will lose the place they held in the national team’s previous campaigns.
As for the Nations League schedule, what lies ahead for Croatia is anything but easy.
Bilić’s side travel to Czechia on September 26th, then to Spain three days later.
Two home matches follow: against England on October 3rd and Spain on October 6th.
Croatia’s fixture schedule in Nations League Group A3:
26 September, 20:45: Czechia – Croatia
29 September, 20:45: Spain – Croatia
3 October, 18:00: Croatia – England (Rujevica Stadium, Rijeka)
6 October, 20:45: Croatia – Spain (Poljud Stadium, Split)
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