Croatian national team on Wednesday announced their 26-member World Cup squad for the 2022 World Cup to be held in Qatar from November 20.
In the list of 26 men selected by head coach Zlatko Dalic, only 8 men have helped Croatia win the 2018 World Cup runner-up, including goalkeeper Dominik Livakovic, veteran central defender duo Dejan Lovren and Domagoj Vida, three midfielders Luka Modric, Marcelo Brozovic Mateo and Kovacic, striker duo Ivan Perisic and Andrej Kramaric.
Modric is in his fourth World Cup and is once again trusted to wear the captain’s armband. This will most likely be the 37-year-old Real Madridmidfielder”s final World Cup.
Following their World Cup runner-up finish in 2018, Croatia national team is undergoing a generational transition.
The list of Croatian squad is missing Antonio Colak, the star of Rangers. The 29-year-old has scored 14 goals for Rangers since joining this summer. He has just have the title of October’s Player of the Month in the Scottish league and was named in the preliminary list of 34 people on the Croatian national team.
Some other players who played in Scotland had the honour of joining Croatia at the World Cup, such as defenders Borna Barisic and Josip Juranovic. Both have been with the national team for Euro 2020 but this will be the first time they will enjoy the World Cup atmosphere.
“These are the players that I and my staff believe in. There will be no pressure, we will take it one game at a time,” Dalic said.
Croatia is in Group F with Morocco, Canada and Belgium. Modric and his teammates have their opening match against Morocco on November 23.
“The first match for us is the most important and all our focus is on Morocco. We are optimistic but need to be realistic. It is a big deal for Croatia to be at the World Cup, we will take it step by step and do the best we can.” Dalic said.
