Croatia became World Cup finalists on July 15, 2018. Nearly one month after, what has happened in Croatian football?
With silver World Cup medals around their necks and the unparalleled support of the nation behind them, it wasn’t hard to imagine that the greatest success in the history of Croatian sport would bring about some positive change.
On Wednesday, when Croatia celebrates the Assumption of Mary (Velika Gospa), Croatia will mark one month since their World Cup success.
But today, just 28 days later, what changes have we already seen take place? Goal.hr breaks it down on August 12, 2018.
Zlatko Dalić will stay on as coach
If we’re talking about short-term success – this is a great victory. The man who succeeded in what no politicians could, the man who united Croatia, will remain the coach of the Croatia national team.
Before the World Cup, however, Dalić had already made up his mind to leave the Croatia bench after the tournament in Russia came to an end. Dalić had learned that HNS tried to sack him long before his World Cup success, and precisely on Croatia’s American tour after a poor showing against Peru. Walking on eggshells with the Federation and finding it hard to trust them at all, Dalić was not interested in giving his heart and soul to those who wouldn’t have his back in return.
The unbelievable World Cup success of the national team, led by Dalić, gave him the nudge to reconsider, though it was really the hundreds of thousands of Croatian fans who rushed to the streets and squares, showed their pride, and congratulated the national team on a job well done which triggered Dalić’s decision to stay. The true face of Croatians and the love for their country shined, sending a picture to the world that Croatia was united once again – at least for the time being.
Šuker promised Dalić things would be different within HNS, that the stubbornness would subside and that he would no longer wait several months for his staff to be approved. Šuker promised that various clubs tied to the Federation would no longer push their players to the national team, that the ‘uhljebs’ wouldn’t prevail, that he would have their trust.
Can HNS work with Dalić this time, and not against him? Only time will tell.
Croatia will get a new stadium
Croatia’s World Cup result and the fan movement in the country have made those at the top of the state dig up a bit more interest in the issues surrounding Croatian football – the conditions.
While the state has ‘officially’ promised a national stadium, whether it will actually happen remains to be seen.
A sparkly new stadium wouldn’t be such a bad thing – Rujevica is too small, Poljud could use a makeover, and do we really have to get into Maksimir?
Meanwhile, HNS has cleverly redirected money from the Svetice camp to all the first-league teams that wanted it, which will be used to fix up the terrains all over Croatia. Though building a new, modern stadium would be a great leap forward.
Transfers of Croatian footballers
In the days after the sensational silver, the high value of Croatian footballers increased even further, making the summer of 2018 the most expensive transfer period in the history of Croatian football.
There has been over 100 million euro in revenue thus far, and the story (er, transfer deadline) has yet to come.
Who left the national team?
So far, only Vedran Ćorluka announced his retirement from the national team, a spot he held for 12 years.
But the list of players Zlatko Dalić will announce on August 20th for the matches against Portugal (friendly match) and Spain (Nations League) still arouses some uncertainty.
Will Luka Modrić, Ivan Rakitić, and Danijel Subašić be in the lineup?
World Cup hero Danijel Subašić has a worthy replacement, Lovre Kalinić, who is ready to jump in. But Rakitić, and especially Modrić, have yet to see a deserving alternative. At least not yet.
Injuries
A month after the World Cup, details emerged that once again demonstrated not just the heart, but the pain suffered by the Croatia national team.
Dejan Lovren revealed that he played with sharp abdominal muscle pain throughout the tournament, but clinched his teeth and refused to mention his symptoms. He is now paying the price, and to put things lightly, Liverpool is not happy.
Ante Rebić admitted in an interview that his ankle was still knocked up from the encounter with Argentina, though he still played through the end of the tournament – and now that he’s returned to Eintracht, the therapy continues.
“I would never play for a club with that,” he stressed.
Ivan Strinić has been injured since the World Cup, as well as Andrej Kramarić, who is therefore in question against Bayern.
Current atmosphere around football
“Only positive,” emphasizes Dalić often – and he transmits this energy to the people.
The result? The Croatian national league season has started, which thus far hasn’t seen any traces of negativity – no refereeing blunders (yet), no bickering (yet), and perhaps these small wins and small shifts could last a bit longer and be the bigger change we are all restless to see.
