The Weekly Take, Issue 32: The Beasts from the East Are Legit

Croatia’s remarkable run to the World Cup final defied all the odds and captivated global audiences.

The Vatreni stunned the world by almost going all the way, taking out Argentina, Russia, and England in the process, before losing to France in a memorable final.

However, there was still one question to be asked after the World Cup: was this Croatia team a one-hit wonder, or had they truly arrived as a new powerhouse of international football?

After the first game of the Nations League, it appeared that Croatia’s World Cup success may have been a one-off, as they were demolished by Spain, losing 6-0 and looking like a mere shadow of the team that achieved so much in Russia.

However, just when it looked like Croatia were ready to be dismissed as a flash in the pan, they earned a 0-0 draw against England, a match that was a World Cup semifinal rematch, in an empty Stadion HNK Rijeka.

Although Croatia weren’t able to leave with the victory, they were nonetheless able to back up their World Cup achievements with another solid performance against one of the world’s most exciting up-and-coming teams. Despite being unable to score a goal, Croatian players such as Luka Modrić, Ante Rebić, and Ivan Perišic caused problems for England throughout the game, sparking memories of their 2-1 World Cup semifinal victory.

So many times in the history of football, a team has a miracle run at a major tournament, only to fail miserably soon after, thus revealing that team as a one-hit wonder.

Teams such as Denmark 1992, Turkey 2002, Greece 2004, and Iraq 2007 can attest to this.

However, this Croatia team is different.

Generally speaking, teams that fizzle out after an amazing underdog run do not have a superstar-level player. This is not true of Croatia, for they have two: Ivan Rakitić and, of course, newly-crowned FIFA player of the year Modrić. The duo served as the foundation for Croatia’s run to the World Cup final and have emerged as arguably the most formidable midfield pairing in international football today.

On top of that, this Croatia team is deeper that most realise. Croatia’s supporting cast includes the likes of Mateo Kovačić, Perišić, Andrej Kramarić, Marko Pjaca, and Rebić. Many, myself included, overlooked this fact heading into the World Cup because of Croatia’s history of underachievement at the tournament, but the reality was that this is a team full of high-level talent.

They also have an underrated coach. The previously-unheralded Zlatko Dalić had not achieved much success in his coaching career prior to the World Cup. However, since then, more and more people are beginning to realise that, while he might not be on the level of, for example, Jürgen Klopp or Diego Simeone, he has clearly now become a top-tier coach.

Furthermore, it’s not as if this team is a “here-and-now” team, because they do have some younger players who will carry the team after Modrić and Rakitić retire. Kovačić is 24, Rebić is 25, Pjaca is 23, Tin Jedvaj and Duje Ćaleta-Car are 22, and Ante Ćorić is 21. While they will likely not reach the same heights as their seniors, they should still be able to keep Croatia as a tough, competitive team.

I would even go so far as to say that the current Croatia team is the second-greatest international football team to ever come out of Eastern Europe, only trailing the legendary 1950s Hungary team.

Stack Croatia up against the likes of teams such as 1960-66 USSR, 1958-62 Yugoslavia, and 1974-82 Poland, and they actually look quite good. Although the USSR did win the European Championship in 1960, that was the inaugural tournament, when only four teams contested it.

With the possible exception of USSR great Lev Yashin, not one of those teams had a player at the level of Modrić. None of them had the squad depth that this Croatia team can boast of having, and, of course, none of those other teams reached the final of the World Cup.

Not only have Croatia proven that they are here to stay, but they have also made sure that years from now, when the story of international football from this era is told, they will be an important part of the narrative.