Croatia Football Fans – Page 3 – News, Videos, Opinion, Fan Blogs, Fixtures & Results for die-hard Croatian fans

DINAMO ZAGREB GET SPURS DRAW

March 13, 2021 index Uncategorized

Croatia football giants Dinamo Zagreb have been drawn with Tottenham Hotspur in the round of 16 of the Europa League after the draw for the round took place in Nyon, Switzerland on Friday afternoon. Tottenham Hotspur is currently being managed by ex-Inter Milan, Real Madrid, FC Porto and Manchester United manager Jose Mourinho. The North Londoners are one of the favourites to win the Europa League this season and Croatia football giants Dinamo Zagreb face an uphill battle to secure a place in the quarterfinals ahead of the Premier League team. Dinamo Zagreb were able to book their place in the round of 16 after beating Russian team FC Krasnodar home and away. The Croatia football club had beaten FC Krasnodar 3-2 away from home in the first leg before Croatia winger MislavOrsic scored the only goal of the game in the second leg to give Dinamo Zagreb a 1-0 victory in the second leg of their round of 32 tie and a 4-2 aggregate win. MislavOrsic scored his goal on 31 minutes and it was more than enough to take his team through to the next round of the Europa League. On their part, Tottenham Hotspur were more emphatic in dealing with Wolfsberger AC of Austria. Dele Alli, Carlos Vinicius and Gareth Bale were all on target to give Spurs a comprehensive 4-0 win over their Austrian opponents at home on Thursday. Brazilian striker Carlos Vinicius is on loan from Portuguese giants Benfica and he was responsible for two goals for his North London team. The win over Wolfsberger AC in the second leg made it 8-1 on aggregate for Tottenham Hotspur after they had won the first leg 4-1 away from home last week Thursday.Dinamo Zagreb will have their hands full in the round 16 over the two legs with Spurs.

CROATIA DEFENDER DISAPPOINTED ABOUT FAILED TRANSFER

February 17, 2021 index Uncategorized

Croatia international defender DujeCaleta-Car was left disappointed after his club blocked a dream transfer to Premier League title holders Liverpool. DujeCaleta-Car plays his club football for Marseille in the French Ligue 1. The 24-year-old centre back was on the radar of Liverpool in the last days of the just concluded transfer window as the Reds try to bolster their centre back options for the rest of the season amidst the numerous injuries in that department.

Liverpool have been hit by a lot of long-term injuries in the centre back department and manager JurgenKlopp has had to manage with the experienced midfield duo of Jordan Henderson and Fabinhoin those centre back positions. JurgenKlopp has also employed the services of the inexperienced duo of Rhys Williams and Nathaniel Philip in those centre back positions. Read more

REBIC MISSED AS MILAN SUFFER DEFEAT

January 28, 2021 index Uncategorized

Croatia international forward Ante Rebic was sorely missed as his AC Milan side suffered their first league defeat at the hands of holders Juventus in the Italian Serie A. The Croatia national team player was not in the squad for the home clash with Juventus after he tested positive for Covid-19. AC Milan had to do without Ante Rebic and RadeKrunic as a result of Coronavirus. Opponents Juventus also had players ruled out because of Covid-19.

The duo of Juan Cuadrado and Alex Sandro missed the game because of Coronavirus. Without Croatia forward Rebic, AC Milan were beaten 3-1 at home by Juventus as they failed to make a big move towards the league title. The Italian Serie league leaders could have gone four points clear of nearest challengers Inter Milan at the summit with a win over Juventus. The Nerazzuristarted the week with a one-point deficit on Milan and they were expected to beat hosts Sampdoria in their latest league outing but the home team had other ideas. Sampdoria stunned Inter Milan 2-1 at home earlier on Wednesday evening to give AC Milan the chance to go four points clear but the Rossoneri were not able to take advantage against Juventus.
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DINAMO, SOLE EUROPA REP FOR CROATIA

December 19, 2020 index Uncategorized

Dinamo Zagreb are the only team left to fly the flag of Croatia in Europe this season after they secured their place in the knockout stage of the Europa League. Dinamo Zagreb are the current champions in the topflight league in Croatia after they won title number 21 at the end of last season.

Dinamo Zagreb are also the most successful club in Croatia by a country mile. Only four clubs in Croatia have won the league title in the first division since the country gained independence in the 90s. The league kicked off in 1992 and the past winners are Croatia Zagreb, NK Zagreb, Hadjuk Split and the aforementioned Dinamo Zagreb.
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CROATIA NAMES SQUAD FOR NOVEMBER FIXTURES

November 17, 2020 index Uncategorized

Croatian head coach Zlatko Dalić has named a 23-man squad for his team’s November UEFA Nations League games on Monday. Croatia is set to return to the field in November with three games following a loss to France and a win against Sweden in the October Nations League games.

Firstly, Croatia will head to Istanbul to play against Turkey in a friendly match on 11 November 2020 before taking on Sweden in an away match on 14 November and Portugal in Split on 17 November at Poljud stadium.
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Bild journalist dismisses permanent Bayern Munich deal for Ivan Perisic

September 23, 2020 index Uncategorized

Bild journalist Philipp Kessler has said that Ivan Perisic is unlikely to join Bayern Munich on a permanent basis at the end of the season. The Croatia international joined the Bavarian giants on a season-long loan from Inter Milan last summer and he initially struggled for game time under manager Niko Kovac.

However, with the dismissal of Kovac, he became a regular under Hansi Flick and managed to impress until the ankle injury in February. Since the restart after the COVID-19 break, Perisic has largely been a substitute with the likes of Kingsley Coman and Serge Gnabry ahead of him in the pecking order and it appears that the club are unlikely to sign him permanently.
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Dalic expecting big things out ofNiko Katic

August 9, 2020 index Uncategorized

Croatia boss Zlatko Dalic says that he will keep a place open for Rangers defender Niko Katic at Euro 2020. The 23-year-old defender is set for a long spell on the sidelines due to a cruciate ligament injury that he picked up in training last week. This is a major blow for a player who has been regarded as a key part of the Croatian national team by managerDalic. In fact, the 23-year-old is also held in high regard by strangers manager Steven Gerrard, who sanctioned a £ 1.3 million deal to get him from Slaven Belupo in 2018.

Even during lockdown,Niko Katic has been working extremely hard in order to make sure that he reaches the best possible condition for Croatia and Rangers. The latter are desperate to make sure that Celtic do not pick up 10 successive league titles. Meanwhile, Croatia are getting ready for the European Championship tournament that has been forced forward by an additional year due to the coronavirus pandemic. This gives teams time and space to make sure that players likeNiko Katic get back to their best shape.Dalic expectsKatic to be a key player for the Rangers team in the forthcoming season. Since making his debut for Croatia in 2017,Katic has featured in just one game. Read more

Ivan Rakitic dismisses speculation of Barcelona exit

May 20, 2020 index Uncategorized

Croatia international Ivan Rakitic has stressed that he is clearly happy at Barcelona and has no plans of heading through the exit door during the summer. The 32-year-old’s role with the Blaugrana has reduced with the arrival of Frenkie de Jong last summer and he has made only 13 starts in the league and European games combined this season.

As a result, there has been the speculation that he could head through the exit door but that does not appear the case. Speaking to Sky Sport Germany, Rakitic insisted that he has no concerns over his current treatment at the club and he plans to see out the remainder of his contract which expires in June 2021.
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Ivan Rakitic suggests he would like to play alongside Ronaldo

March 27, 2020 index Uncategorized

Barcelona midfielder Ivan Rakitic has sparked speculation regarding his future after suggesting he would like to play alongside Cristiano Ronald at Juventus. The Croatian has been in-and-out of the starting lineup for the Blaugrana this term and his situation has not improved despite the recent change in the head coach.

As a result, he has been fancied to leave the Camp Nou in the quest for regular gametime and a move to Turin could be a possibility in the summer. In an interview with Bleacher Report, the 2018 World Cup finalist said that Miralem Pjanic is the most underrated player in the world and added that he would like to play alongside Ronaldo.
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England manager looking forward to Croatia test at Euro 2020

January 15, 2020 index Uncategorized

England manager Gareth Southgate is looking forward to another contest with Croatia at the European Championships next summer. The Three Lions faced Croatia at the semi-final stage of the World Cup last year where they succumbed to a 2-1 defeat after Mario Mandzukic scored in added extra time for Zlatko Dalic’s side.

Since then, the Three Lions have fared better with a 0-0 draw and a 2-1 triumph in the Nations League against Croatia and Southgate is expecting another tight game between the sides. Speaking to reporters, Southgate said that the Three Lions won’t have an easy task on their hands, comparing the quality and experience within the ranks of Croatia.
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