Wearing a mask, being number one in the world

When Joshko Gwadiol was a boy, he told those around him that he had three goals.

Fans watching this World Cup will be attracted by two players wearing black masks, and these two players, give people two very different feelings --

Son Heung-min of South Korea seems to have lost his magic due to wearing a mask. But another big, strong centre-back, who seems to be wearing invincible armor, his omnipresent presence and fierce defensive awareness, has repeatedly denied opponents.

This bearded, muscular man, not just a one-time veteran of this tournament but playing in his first World Cup, wears Croatia's No20 and is only 20 years old. His name is Gwadiol.

Born in 2002, Gwadiol's growth is different from that of most teenagers. He was targeted by many big clubs when he was very young, but he did not agree, but went to Dinamo Zagreb with his heart. He played just 13 games for the Croatian giants and immediately became one of the hottest stars in world football.

One scout commented that it would be hard to imagine an 18-year-old with a combination of determination, intelligence and fierceness. The qualities most needed in a centre-back take years to develop.

Gevadiol was such a genius, unusually strong.

By choosing to stay at Dinamo Zagreb, he is fulfilling his life goal.

Gwadiol's hometown is Zagreb. His father was an amateur soccer player, but instead of turning professional, he inherited the family business and became a fisherman. In his spare time, his father would take out a football to play two feet, under the influence of his father, young Gwadiol also fell in love with football.

For this reason, since he was a child, he wanted to go to Dinamo Zagreb, after all, it is the biggest traditional club in Croatia. At the age of six, Gwadiol drew in crayon a picture of the Dinamo Zagreb shirt he wanted to wear in the future. It was his first goal, which he later achieved.

It is hard to imagine that when Luka Modric first pulled on a Croatian shirt, Gvadiol was just four years old and 16 years later they are team-mates. In fact, Gwadiol didn't stand out at first. He just loved playing football, so his father sent him to the local club at the age of six. The local club didn't have any players in that age group, so he was forced to become a "skip".

He wanted to be a member of Dinamo Zagreb, but it was not enough. When he joined the club's eight-year-old youth team, his talent did not stand out. But the coach soon saw other qualities in him: he was polite, humble and confident.

Many people call him "the fisherman's son", which is not a nice name, but when he heard it, he was proud to tell everyone around him, even when he played in the Bundesliga, he would still share with people, "You know, my father is a fisherman, he can catch all kinds of big fish."

"If I didn't play football, I'd be a fisherman, like my dad."

Instead of going by the name Jo? ko Gvardiol, who sounded so similar to Josep Guardiola that his team-mates preferred to call him "Pep". Another coincidence is that Guvadiol started in central midfield, the same position Guardiola did as a player, but he was not quite up to the task and at first the manager even thought of dropping him and using him to do the dirty work as a goalkeeper or defender.

However, when the coach tried to switch him to playing left center back, he burst into a world of unprecedented potential. In the summer of his 15th year, all of a sudden big teams from all over the world came to see him train. Inter Milan even contacted his father and handed him a cheque. At that time, Gevadiol was not even in the second team at Dynamo.

His father took the initiative to come to him to discuss, after a night, they politely declined the invitation, "We both feel that now is the right time to grow up, we need to let ourselves have the real ability, then go to the elite football team."

He has grown astonishingly fast and reached a level that has never been achieved in the history of the Croatian Federation: four games in the second team, promotion to the first team, 13 games a season, and the whole Croatian league realized that this kid was not going to stay. 'This kid is already a notch above the whole league,' one coach said. 'We're going to see him fly into the wider sky.'

In 2021, Leipzig paid a transfer fee of 16 million euros to bring him to Germany. Rather surprisingly, he decided to come because Leipzig, with its peaceful rural environment and simple team-mate relationships, was a good place to go next.

His other two goals are also being achieved.

In 2021, Gwadiol jumped from the Croatian Under-19 team to the national Under-21 team and made his debut in the European Championship at the age of 19 years, 4 months and 21 days, making him the youngest player ever to appear in a major tournament. At the same time, the World Cup beckons.

Unfortunately, before the World Cup started, he was injured.

During Leipzig's match against Freiburg, he crashed into an opponent and broke the bridge of his nose, so he donned a dramatic mask that would see him through the World Cup and become famous with him.

When the time came for a new Croatia national team, the veteran Vida stepped aside and replaced the 20-year-old Gvadiol with the main defensive force. He tackled wildly, dominated the air and even ran the ball into the penalty area. Croatia had conceded only two goals in their first four games and surprised the world with his maturity.

In the third crucial group game between Croatia and Belgium, Lukaku became the butt of jokes, repeatedly missing chances to score, with Gwadiol, the centre-back at his side, discomfited. In the last minute of stoppage time, he saw off a late threat with a tackle in the tiny box.

"It was worth every individual award in the World Cup," fans said of the tackle, "It was worth $20 million," and "It was a kid who kept Croatian hopes alive."

Defending against Romelu Lukaku, who has made a name for himself, insisted after the game that he was not a hero, that he was very strong and that it was something to celebrate. But when the subject turns, he smiles and goes back to being the 20-year-old he should be.

"I do really well in this mask. I feel good about it and I plan to wear it for the rest of my career."

Croatia coach Daric said: "I don't like to praise my players, I'm afraid they float. But I have to say that Gwadiol is the best centre-back in the world and I can't in good conscience deny that."

Perhaps it is not an exaggeration to say that there is no one in world football who does not know Gwadiol.

Now he has one last goal left - to play in the Premier League.

"My dad and I always watched Liverpool when I was very young. I grew up with Liverpool. It's unique."

Although Gwadiol has not been linked to Liverpool so far, the list of teams pursuing him could not be better - Real Madrid, Barcelona, Manchester City, Manchester United, Chelsea... They have taken it for granted that Gevadiol is "the best centre-half in the world for the future" and have already put up a lot of money for a bidding war after the World Cup.

The fee for the forthcoming deal is likely to exceed 90 million euros, a sum never achieved by a defender in history. If that happens, Gevadiol will truly be No. 1 in the world.

Perhaps the best centre-back in the world, on our watch, has arrived.

Gwadiol, 20, is about to achieve three goals he set for himself this year. Then, maybe he no longer needs to run toward a goal, and it's time to create his own legend.