Top 10 soccer players from Croatia

Back in 1992, the Croatian national team was officially recognized by the International Federation of Association Football, after which it started its green campaign in the name of Croatia, and started to qualify for the World Cup in 1994, truly playing the Croatian rhapsody.

It can be said that their checkered jersey pattern, based on the Croatian checkerboard, was unique among many sports teams, and later earned the name "Checkers". In terms of strength, as early as the former South era, Croatia's soccer strength is quite strong, sending a lot of international players for Yugoslavia. After entering the Croatian era, their achievements in soccer are actually quite outstanding.

In terms of the World Cup, since participating in the qualifying rounds, Croatia has only failed to reach the final round in 2010, taking third place in 1998 and second place in 2018, two particularly impressive golden eras before and after. In terms of the European Cup, Croatia did not enter the final round in 2000, the rest all participated, with the best results being the two top eight in 1996 & 2008.

When it comes to famous footballers from Croatia, I wonder who comes to your mind? In this article, I will synthesize the strength, fame, influence and other factors, a comprehensive inventory of the TOP 10 representatives for your reference. Of course, due to the limitation of space, if there is a debate or the pearl of choice, you are welcome to leave a message in the comments section to share.

Ten, Robert Alnilam

Robert Alnilam, the signature character of the early Croatian team, appeared in the left side of the all-round player, can play any position on the left side, personal speed, strong impact, career has played in Hajduk, Bari, Torino, Juveniles, Royal Bess, Coventry, Real Madrid, Las Palms, Anathematizes, is a typical small country wanderer star.

For the national team, Robert Jalni has played a combined 81 games and scored one goal. Before Dario Simic, he was the team's all-time appearance king. In the 1998 World Cup, he opened the scoring in the quarterfinals against Germany with a long-range shot from outside the box, his only goal for the national team, and his most impressive one.

Robert Kovacic

Looking back at Robert Kovacic's career, born and raised in Germany, he has always chosen to play for Croatia, personally playing for clubs such as Hertha Zalendorf, Nuremberg, Leverkusen, Bayern Munich, Juventus, Borussia Dortmund and Dina Zagreb.

As a center back, Robert Kovacic was a great confrontational player and an aggressive tackler. In the golden years after his fame at Leverkusen at the turn of the new century, he played as a starter for three well-known teams, Bayern, Juve and Dortmund, which is a testimony to his extraordinary strength. In the last year of his career, Robert Kovacic chose to hang up his boots in his hometown team Dinamo Zagreb, which is also a kind of homecoming.

For the national team, Kovacic played a total of 84 games between 1999 and 2009, and was the core of the defense that the Georgians relied on for a while. Incidentally, the Kovac brothers are a very famous pair of brothers in Croatian football, Robert Kovac's brother, Niko Kovac, who plays at the back, also had a brilliant career.

Eight, Niko Kovac

Niko Kovacic, career has played for Hertha Czerndorf, Hertha Berlin, Leverkusen, Hamburg, Bayern Munich, Hertha Berlin, Red Bull Salzburg and other teams, known for its strong tackling and passing skills.

In terms of club achievements, Da Kovac may not rank in this position, but in the Croatian national team, he was once an extremely significant figure in the limelight. Between 1996 and 2008, he played a total of 83 games and contributed 14 goals, and after Euro 2004, at the age of 23, he began to captain the Croatian national team, carrying Croatia for a period of time as a rising figure.

After retiring, Kovacic transformed into a coach and is now coaching at Monaco in Ligue 1. He was the coach of Bayern Munich in the 18-19 season and was the coach of Croatia in 13-15. Incidentally, the younger brother Robert Kovacic also worked as an assistant coach beside his brother for a long time after he retired. In terms of transforming into a coach, Niko Kovacic, who was not a bad player, can be said to be one of the most successful.

Seven, Dario Simic

Dario Simic has a tough Eastern European face that is instantly recognizable, and he is also a versatile player at the back. Starting out at Dinamo Zagreb, he moved to Inter Milan in 1999 and then to AC Milan in 2002, playing several seasons as a starter for both sides. At the end of his career, he spent time with Monaco in Ligue 1 and Dinamo Zagreb, his home team.

For the national team, Dario Simic played 100 games between 1996 and 2008, scoring three goals. As the former team's all-time appearance king, he is also the first famous player to reach 100 games for Croatia, and is believed to be part of everyone's classic memory of the Croatian star.

Sixth, Zvonimir Boban

Zvonimir Boban, the former core midfielder of the Croatian national team and AC Milan, started his career at Croatian giants Dinamo Zagreb and spent ten years at Milan between 1991 and 2001, winning the Serie A title four times and the Champions League once, participating in the unbeaten league myth of the 1993 season.

In the national team, Boban played 51 matches for Croatia in the 1990s, scoring 12 goals. In the hearts of Croatian fans in the 1990s, the technically brilliant and unruly Boban could be considered a soccer hero in their hearts and was one of the early aces of the Croatian team after it was really established. It's a pity that in the glorious 1998 World Cup third-place tour, Boban's performance was average, and he made a mistake in the quarterfinals against France, and then began to take a back seat in the national team.

V. Aaron Boksic

As a center forward, Aaron Boksic, who was active from the late 1980s to the beginning of the new century, was very strong in his heyday, playing for Marseille, Lazio, Juventus, Middlesbrough and other teams.

In the two years of 92-93, playing for Marseille, Aaron Boksic scored 33 goals in 58 games and was one of the contributors to Marseille winning the European Cup. In 1993, Aaron Boksic won the Golden Boot of Ligue 1, the European Championship and the second place in the annual European Golden Ball Award, behind the winner of the year and Italian legend Baggio. It can be said that before Modric, Boksic is the Croatian player whose peak strength is closest to the Golden Ball.

Unfortunately, as a geeky striker, Boksic suffered from injuries early on, his peak was not particularly long, and he retired relatively early at the age of 33. Incidentally, in 2000, Boksic moved to Middlesbrough in the English Premier League, and at that time took 62,000 pounds a week, once the first highest paid player in the Premier League. As far as I can remember, Aaron Boksic left a superb goal in a 3-1 win over Manchester United in December 2002, the last goal of his club career.

In the national team, the young Aaron Boksic was the team's third center forward in the Yugoslav era, after Vujovic and Pantsev, and by the Croatian era, he had scored 10 goals in 40 games as a regular center forward. Compared to his club career, he is a little less successful in the national team.

Four: Mario Mandzukic

Mario Mandzukic may not be a superb winger with a strong style of play, good at battling with defenders, outstanding scramble ability and aerial combat ability, slow speed but excellent round-trip range, high motivation to participate in defense, goal scoring efficiency from not particularly exaggerated but with a big heart, reliable in critical moments, Mario Mandzukic may not be a superb winger with individual heroism, but in his heyday he was definitely the best team striker and the one the giants wanted. The championship puzzle.

Looking back at Mandzukic's career, his earliest fame can be traced back to the Wolfsburg era from 2010 to 2012, when he quickly became the core player of the team as a Bundesliga rookie, and was then scouted by Bayern, thus starting a journey that was the envy of many players as a mercenary of the giants. After leaving Wolfsburg, where he made his name, he played for Bayern Munich, Atletico Madrid, Juventus and now AC Milan.

For the national team, Mario Mandzukic scored 33 goals in a combined 89 appearances for the team between 2007 and 2018. After finishing runner-up in the World Cup with the team in 2018, Mankind honorably stepped down from the national team to give way.

III. Ivan Rakitic

With four La Liga titles, one Champions League title, one Club World Cup title, and several Spanish domestic cup titles, Ivan Rakitic was one of the top midfielders in European football during his peak years between 2014 and 2020, when he held his place in a strong Barca side.

Prior to that, Ivan Rakitic had progressively trained with Basel in the Swiss Super League, Schalke 04 in the Bundesliga and Sevilla in La Liga. After leaving Barcelona the year before, Ivan Rakitic returned to Sevilla and is still in good form.

Like his national teammate Modric, Ivan Rakitic has the same amazing physical ability and precise passing skills as his national teammates, and he is one of the best players of the Croatian Army in the past generation, with his skill in shooting with a wide bend or a powerful straight shot and his ability to handle corners. In his national team career, he played 106 games for the team between 2007 and 2019, scoring 15 goals, and was one of Croatia's most decorated players in the past European campaign.

II. Davor Suker

When it comes to the classic legends in the history of the Croatian team, how can we skip the violin-playing [golden left foot] Davor Suker?

As Croatia's all-time leading scorer, Davor Suker played 69 games for the national team between 1992 and 2002, scoring a staggering 45 goals. In the 1998 World Cup, Davor Suker was a hero, scoring six goals in a single tournament, winning the World Cup Golden Boot and the World Cup Silver Ball, and helping Croatia to become the third place winner in the World Cup.

In his club career, Davor Suker played for Osijek, Dinamo Zagreb, Seville, Real Madrid, Arsenal, West Ham, 1860 Munich and many other clubs, among which the Seville years and the Real Madrid years were the most outstanding. Currently, Davor Suk is the president of the Croatian Football Association, which shows the respect of his domestic soccer circle in Croatia.

I. Luka Modrić

The ability of Luka Modrić as a top midfield commander is extremely comprehensive, and Modrić knows all the technical indicators that can be remembered by fans as a midfielder.

In addition to the technical label, the strength of Luka Modric is that almost all fans and opponents who have seen him play will know clearly that Luka Modric has the heart of a warrior.

Looking back at Luka Modric's career, he has played for Dinamo Zagreb, Silenski, Internazionale Zapresic, Tottenham Hotspur and Real Madrid. The Tottenham Hotspur years from 2008 to 2012 were the period when mainstream fans started to know him, while the Real Madrid years from 2012 to now are his golden years.

Since the start of his career, Modric has won a combined total of 3 Grammy League titles, 2 La Lisa titles and 4 Champions League titles; his national team career is even more memorable for his achievements and influence. Since 2006, he has contributed 20 goals in 146 matches for the national team.

In 2018, Modric led the team to win the World Cup runner-up, personally won the best match three times in seven matches, and won the Golden Ball Award in the same year, becoming the first superstar to win the FIFE Best Football Award, FIFE Best Men's Player Award, European Player of the Year and Golden Ball of the Year in the same year. On the best player in the history of the Croatian team, who can compete when Modric is crowned with the Golden Ball?