The Vatreni Squad for Nations League preliminary matches September-October 2026 ←Last Croatian Squad that faced England (1083)
Player	Birthdate	Age	Pos	Club	App	G
Baturina, Martin	16 February 2003 in Zurich, Switzerland	23	M	Como 1907, Italy	23	2
Beljo, Dion Drena	1 March 2002	24	F	Gnk Dinamo Zagreb	3	1
Budimir, Ante	22 July 1991 in Zenica, Yugoslavia	35	F	CA Osasuna, Spain	43	7
Erlić, Martin	24 January 1998	28	CB	FC Midtjylland, Denmark	13	1
	Erlić withdrew from the squad on 21 September because of a foot injury
Gvardiol, Joško	23 January 2002	24	LB	Manchester City FC, England	54	4
Juranović, Josip	16 August 1995	31	RB	1.FC Union Berlin, Germany	40	0
	Juranović withdrew from the squad on 21 September because of a tendon injury
Ivanović, Franjo	1 October 2003 in Schwaz, Austria	22	F	RC de Lens, France, on loan from SL e Benfica, Portugal	11	2
Jakić, Kristijan	14 May 1997	29	DM	Panthessaloníkios Athlitikós Ómilos Konstantinopolitón, Greece, on loan from FC Augsburg 1907, Germany	17	2
	Jakić drafted from the standby list to the main squad on 21 September
Kotarski, Dominik	10 February 2000	26	Gk	Gnk Dinamo, on loan from FK København, Denmark	4	0
Kovačić, Mateo	6 May 1994 in Linz, Austria	32	CM	Manchester City FC, England	119	5
Kramarić, Andrej	19 June 1991 as part of Yugoslavia	35	F	TSv 1899 Hoffenheim, Germany	119	36
Livaković, Dominik	9 January 1995	31	Gk	FC Barcelona, Spain	81	0
Majer, Lovro	17 January 1998	28	M	Athlitiki Enosis Konstantinoupoleos, Greece	38	9
	Majer drafted from the standby list to the main squad on 21 September
Matanović, Igor	31 March 2003 in Hamburg, Germany	23	F	SC Freiburg, Germany	13	2
				also has German U17 & U18 appearances
Mišić, Josip	28 June 1994	32	DM	Gnk Dinamo	4	0
Modrić, Luka	9 September 1985 as part of Yugoslavia	41	CM	AC Milan, Italy	204	30
Musa, Petar	4 March 1998	28	F	FC Dallas, United States	13	2
Pandur, Ivor	25 March 2000	26	Gk	Rangers FC, Scotland	0	0
Pašalić, Marco	14 September 2000 in Karlsruhe, Germany	25	RF	Orlando City SC, United States	20	2
Pašalić, Mario	9 February 1995 in Mainz, Germany	31	AM	Atalanta BC, Italy	91	12
Perišić, Ivan	2 February 1989 as part of Yugoslavia	37	LF	Philips Sport Vereniging, Netherlands	160	39
Pongračić, Marin	11 September 1997 in Landshut, Germany	28	CB	ACF Fiorentina, Italy	24	0
	Pongračić drafted from the standby list to the main squad on 21 September
Smolčić, Ivan	17 August 2000	26	R/CB	Como 1907, Italy	3	0
Stanišić, Josip	2 April 2000 in Munich, Germany	26	FB	FC Bayern München, Germany	36	0
				also has two German U19 appearances
Sučić, Luka	8 September 2002 in Linz, Austria	24	M	Real Sociedad, Spain	23	1
Sučić, Petar	25 October 2003 in Livno, Bosnia & Herzegovina	22	CM	FC Internazionale Milano, Italy	23	2
				also has numerous Bosnia youth appearances
Šutalo, Josip	28 February 2000 in Čaplina, Bosnia & Herzegovina	26	CB	SS Lazio, Italy, on loan from Amsterdamsche FC Ajax, Netherlands	38	0
Vlašić, Nikola	4 October 1997	28	AM	FC Torino, Italy	67	11
Vušković, Luka	24 February 2007	19	CB	Brighton & Hove Albion FC, England	8	1
on standby
Fruk, Toni	9 March 2001	25	AM	HNK Rijeka	7	1
Letica, Karlo	11 February 1997	29	Gk	FC Luzern, Switzerland	0	0
Moro, Nikola	12 March 1998	28	DM	Bologna FC 1909, Italy	10	0
Stojković, Luka	28 October 2003	22	M	Gnk Dinamo	0	0

Squad details correct up to and including Croatia's match against Spain on 29 September 2026.
Tallies taken from HNS

Diary

Monday, 7 September 2026 - The new head coach of the Croatian national football team, Slaven Bilić, has announced the list of players for the upcoming Nations League preliminary matches at the end of the month, and into October. The biggest surprise is Bilić's inclusion of 41 year-old Luka Modrić.

Monday, 21 September 2026 - The squad gather and have their first training session. Martin Erlić and Josip Juranović are unable to participate due to injuries. Bilic has decided to draft in three players from the reserve list. Fiorentina defender Marin Pongračić, PAOK defender Kristijan Jakić and AEK midfielder Lovro Majer.

Saturday, 26 September 2026 - Czech Republic 1 Croatia 2 - In the second debut of coach Slaven Bilić, the Vatreni successfully completed the task in the Czech capital and started the Nations League competition with a valuable three points. In the middle of the first half, Luka Sučić threatened, and in the final few minutes before going to the break, Petar Sučić's excellent chance was saved by Horniček, with Matanović's attempt that went past the goal. Croatia took the lead early in the second half, when captain Modrić took advantage of Matanović's intercepted ball and scored from the edge of the penalty area, but the Czechs equalized just seven minutes later, thanks to a return ball from Hložek for the scorer Karabec. In the 77th minute, Perišić, who centered from the left side, and scorer Marco Pašalić, who shook the net with his header, gave Croatia the advantage fifteen minutes before the end of the game. The Czechs immediately responded through Radosta, but the goal was not allowed following the intervention of VAR, and in injury time, Budimir's excellent shot was stopped by Horniček.

Tuesday, 29 September 2026 - Spain 4 Croatia 1 - After a valuable victory in Prague, Slaven Bilic's team went to Spain in their first home appearance after winning the World Cup. Spain took the lead in the second minute, thanks to Yamal's precise shot, and after a few more home opportunities, Croatia responded in the 28th minute when captain Perišić scored, and Beljo shook the net with his header for the equaliser. However, the hosts immediately gained the advantage. Yamal crossed for Pubill, who is the highest in the dive and scores. Shortly before going into half-time, Lopez hit the goalpost. The game changed further in the 63rd minute when Yamal end the play with a shot for 3-1 with his second goal, and the fourth goal was scored in the final minutes of the match in Sevilla was scored by Williams.

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CG