Kolkata: Like with Lionel Messi and Argentina, Croatia have players who can do the running for Luka Modric, said Igor Stimac. The former Croatia international and head coach picked Martin Baturina and Petar Susic for that.
“They have brought strength and ability to the team. Baturina comes off a good second half of the season with Como. We are convinced that once Luka is done, Baturina will be the one to put his feet into Luka’s big boots,” Stimac told HT ahead of his country’s opening game, against England in Dallas on Wednesday.
That’s some endorsement of the attacking midfielder born in Switzerland. Especially because it comes from a former central defender who was part of the debutant Croatia team that finished third in the 1998 World Cup.
Marcelo Brozovic, part of the stellar midfield that played a World Cup final in 2018 and finished third four years later, has retired from international football but in Inter Milan’s Susic, Croatia have found a replacement, said Stimac.
“He is similar to Brozovic, maybe even higher quality and this is saying a lot. He’s very creative and dangerous coming into the box. He can cover the pitch in the same way Brozovic did, running 16-17km per game.”
Susic is 22 and Baturina 23. Stimac said they can help Modric, 40, in the way Rodrigo de Paul and Julian Alvarez covered for Messi in Qatar.
Modric should start because of how important he is to the team, said Stimac, 58. “But I am not there talking to him to see how he feels and whether it is personally better for him to play the last 30 minutes. Luka is very reasonable. He will start on the bench for the sake of the team.”
On a video call from Mumbai, where he is a pundit for Zee5, Stimac said what was worrying was how ready Josko Gvardiol was. Before most of the world, Stimac had noticed the central defender who had a breakout World Cup in 2022. But a leg injury kept Gvardiol away from January to May. He played the friendlies against Belgium and Slovenia but he was “not the Gvardiol we are used to seeing.”
Gvardiol, Modric and Mateo Kovacic coming to the World Cup after long injury breaks is why Stimac said, “we are not in our best moment.” Modric’s season ended in April after a cheekbone fracture which needed surgery. Kovavic missed a chunk of 2025-26 with an ankle injury that also needed surgery.
“(But) We have senior players who know how to win medals in the World Cup. And I can tell you no team would want to face us in the knockout rounds.” Why? “Because few teams can handle pressure like us.”
In Qatar, Croatia were overrun by Japan in the round of 16 but hung on to win on penalties. In the quarter-final, they trailed Brazil in extra-time, drew level and then beat them in the tie-breaker. In 2018, they went behind early against England in the semi-final but again won in extra-time.
Stimac said the teams won’t mind a point against each other in their opening game of Group L. “A loss can put you under pressure because we have a very difficult opponent in Ghana. Panama should be okay if we are at our best.”
Ghana are managed by Carlos Queiroz who has twice crossed paths with Stimac. As India head coach in 2023 when Queiroz was in charge of Qatar and in Iran when he was managing the national team and Stimac was head coach at Sepahan.
When the conversation moved to Harry Kane, Stimac said Croatia must deal with him collectively. “The defensive midfielders must protect space in front of Kane and as a central defender, you must make sure he doesn’t get behind you. You will also need to read the moves from the player who is on the ball and trying to serve Kane.
“He can hurt you from any position or in any situation. He can drop off and draw others into the game, he has a good header and is good with both feet. There are not many of his quality in the world. We need to do it as a unit, as a team.”
Stimac was India’s head coach from 2019 to 2024. In that time he rarely spoke of 1998. On Tuesday night, he did, talking about missing “two tournaments because of the war.” Croatia could not play the 1992 European championship and the 1994 World Cup because its bloody separation from Yugoslavia had delayed joining UEFA and FIFA.
Asked how he prepared for his first World Cup match, against Jamaica, Stimac replied: “By shutting out all kinds of distractions.” Did he sleep well? “Excitement was high. But we were relaxed and confident. Our generation had waited many years to be recognised. It was the first and last opportunity to prove our value.”
