Croatia’s “golden” generation still has what it needs. Can you win a medal now?

Medals are important and they last how Zlatko Dalic likes to remind everyone.

The Croatia head coach has exaggerated his nation in the last seven and a half years of the World Cup final in 2018, a third place in Katar, a third place in Katar, and as a second place in the Nations League in 2023 after the exit in the group level last summer after two points late and four points.

“We are always the dark horse, we don’t always belong among the favorites, nobody believes in us, but in the past six years we have won three medals,” he said in the euro, as the Guardian reports. “Croatia deserves a greater respect of everyone for what we did.”

By 2-0 on Thursday evening in the first stage of the quarterfinals of the Nations League with 2-0, the return match on the Sunday-Sind you have a step closer to the cabinet to add a medal with gold color.

Similar to the head coach of France Didier Deschamps (responsible since 2012), Dalic’s longevity sometimes manifests itself as stability and in other moments in which it is located. He is Croatia the longest in reigning head coach with his three predecessors who have combined less time.

However, this victory was very different from the 1-0 victory in Paris three years ago when Luka Modrics received early victory against France.

This time Andrej Kramaric had saved a punishment from Mike Maignan after eight minutes. His central effort was weak, without the skill of a broken Panenka and without much size or strength, and the goalkeeper saves his legs.

Modric will play against France on Thursday evening (Damir Sencar/AFP via Getty Images)

A meaning to beat France in 2022 was back three days earlier from a 3-0 defeat against Austria (at home) and shook the “complex against France”, which Dalic said that they were held by the 2018 World Cup.

Here they showed their ability to miss an early punishment. Dalic had experimented in the Nations League group phase with five to mixed success. In Split, he returned to a 4-3-3 that contained a trademark mermodric and Mateo Kovacic Double Pivot.

There were many balls behind a high-frezen-rich line, especially from Croatia on the left, and tried not to isolate 9 ante Budimir against a central defender or to find the left Kramaric in space. Dalic’s team also pressed up and in one case stretched out to a 4-1-2-1-2 to correspond to the form of France during a goal kick.

The opener was all about the technicians Croatia. Kovacic found a shooting angle after a two-two mit-budimir, then hesitated and was overcrowded. France tried to think of his blocked shot, but Croatia got possession of it halfway back. Modric pulled wide and without pressure from a blue shirt that was cut off in Ivan Perisic and exceeded from the right.

He had only one goal in the box budimir and France, right-back Jules Kounde got up, so that the two foot high Perisic took over its best option. He switched the ball to his left foot and rolled a cross for Budimir’s almost post run. Everything clicked and he passed Maignan.

Center-Forward is an area in which Croatia has to fight under Dalic. This was only Budimir’s fourth goal in his 29th appearance and his first since June 2024 before the euro. There is a lot of Modric who pull the strings in midfield at the age of 39, although the only one under 30 in Croatia was six Martin Baturina No. 10 (22).

The second goal again showed the quality of Perisic and the direct threat to Croatia. A long ball from Duje Caleta-Car from the left central defender aimed at Josko Gvardiol and played in the same advanced left-back role that he plays for Manchester City. It made a two-V-one on the scoundal, with the left Kramaric ran beyond the full-back.

Gvardiol is subject and Kramaric went on the edge to Budimir and made a step as stylish as it is impressive. When France’s midfield struck back, Budimir’s shot was blocked by William Saliba and bounced into Perisic. He slows down, let the ball fall over him and fired a flush volleye past Maignan into the back corner.

Since 2021, this has only been the ninth defeat for France and the fifth in which they have not achieved – Croatia are two of them. A real strength under Dalic is, like closely Croatia games, never big winners, but rarely blown away (only three defeats with more than two goals since Euro 2020). This was her 18th clean sheet in the last 47 games.

Budimir celebrates his goal against France (Damir Sencar/AFP via Getty Images)

The fact that they were first in the first place scolded them to a point in front of Scotland from the groups of the Nations League. There is a fair argument for an aging squad and fourth oldest in Germany last summer-sich in its Twilight years. The 13th FIFA ranking of Croatia has been the lowest since August 2022.

As Dalic’s team saw France’s victory, her street Smarts emphasized. This has been a nation in the past seven years that France has won twice, won against Argentina, over 90 minutes at tournaments at tournaments, thrown Brazil out of a world championship and repeatedly won penalty shootouts.

When France pushed for a goal, blue shirts kept standing overloaded by two or even three Croatian players. The front foot showed that they did 13 interceptions in France. Ousmane Dembele played a similar role in setting up what he has in Paris Saint-Germain, and always found himself on his back with a defender.

In the 78th minute there was a repeated situation when Culeta-Car and Gvardiol against Dembele accepted a three-V-one (with Modric) and put it under pressure for shooting. Croatia started the Torkick and France immediately went behind them when Gvardiol got over. The left -back recovered to make a duel and hugged his teammates again.

Modric was particularly clever with his recreational runs and often returned to close the teammate of Real Madrid, Kylian Mbappe. In one case, he followed Mbappe’s run into his box when the striker played a two-two game game with Lucas Digne. When Mbappe went down, Modric clearly had the feeling that insufficient contact existed and screamed into the Frenchman’s face.

However, victory only has the meaning when Croatia looks through the job on Sunday. As Dalic says, medals are important, and Croatia can still prove that this generation is really “golden”.

(Topfoto: Damir Sencar/AFP via Getty Images)