Croatia head into Russia for the World Cup with many not expecting them to win the tournament. They however do have some very intelligent players who should cause the big guns more than a few problems should they meet.
Luka Modric is a key player at Real Madrid, Ivan Rakitic is very important at Barcelona. Mateo Kovacic is younger but also at Madrid. Then we have Ivan Perisic and Marcelo Brozovic at Inter Milan, Mario Mandzukic at Juventus, Nikola Kalinic at AC Milan and Sime Vsraljko at Atletico Madrid. They’re all playing at big clubs.
The likes of Vedran Corluka, Modric, Rakitic and Mandzukic have also been going to tournaments since Euro 2008, so they the experience of how to deal with it all and what to expect. There are also younger players like Andrej Kramaric, Marko Pjaca and Marko Rog. It’s the perfect mix.