PHILADELPHIA – Death, taxes and Croatia finding another gear at a World Cup with an experienced core. Some things feel inevitable. After a 2-1 victory over Ghana in Philadelphia on Saturday, Croatia are heading to Toronto as Group L runners-up, where they will meet Portugal, the second-place finisher from Group K.
Croatia advancing from the group was hardly a shock, but they made the race for first place far more uncomfortable than expected after losing their opener to England. Their response forced the Three Lions to win on the final matchday to secure the top spot. The attack still flowed through the seemingly timeless Luka Modric, who recorded 102 touches and dictated play across the pitch, but the Vatereni also showed they have emerging talent around him. One of those younger contributors, Petar Sucic, broke the deadlock with a superb strike from outside the penalty area.
The Inter midfielder is quickly developing a reputation for long-range finishes, and he has an ideal mentor at club level in Hakan Calhanoglu, the Turkiye international widely regarded as a specialist from distance. As one of the youngest members of Croatia’s squad, Sucic is playing with growing belief, choosing his moments and delivering when the stakes are highest. Croatia’s two goals were also the first Ghana had conceded in the tournament, underlining the threat this Croatian side can carry going forward.
“Yeah, for me it doesn’t mean [anything] that I’m the youngest because I came outside to play like everyone,” Sucic said. “And for me, it doesn’t matter how much age you have; you need to do your best job on the pitch. And of course, I like to score good goals, and of course, after training we practice a lot… Hakan is one of the best in that.”
Surrounding Modric with players capable of producing those moments gives Croatia a familiar formula for success. From his deeper midfield role, Modric’s extraordinary vision once again set the tempo. He created four chances and supplied the assist for Croatia’s second goal. Long celebrated as a national icon, Modric continues to show there is very little he cannot influence, and his importance to this team remains unmistakable.
“I tell him after the game, you play like you are 20 years old. He he he was incredible today,” Sucic said with a smile. “He runs a lot, he goes in every duel. He was so good with the ball. Yeah, he is our leader, our best player, and we are so happy that he can lead us also in this World Cup, and he can play until he wants. He’s so good, and yeah, we are happy with him.”
Croatia’s sustained success has been built on a generation that includes Modric, Mateo Kovacic, Ivan Perisic and Dominik Livakovic, players whose experience has made the pathway smoother for newcomers entering the national-team environment. They know the standards immediately. Yet even at 40, after everything he has already accomplished, Modric still finds ways to astonish those sharing the pitch with him.
“Luka was unbelievable today, I swear it seems like he tuned the time 10 years before and really one of the best performances that I’ve seen him do in a Croatia shirt,” Vlasic said.
Depending on who they land in the next round, it could be a tough road for Croatia, but they aren’t going to worry much about that, especially after ensuring that they won a game where technically a draw would’ve been enough to get them through to the next round. Pride for the shirt is always important, especially when it’s one as iconic as the checkered pattern that Croaita dons.
“In the end, it’s the World Cup, so you need to do your best, and you play for the national team, you need to go, and every game you want to win,” Sucic said.
We’ve seen squads, even veteran squads, fracture at the World Cup after a disappointing loss to start the campaign, but there’s been no such problem in Zlatko Dalic’s squad. Anyone could be benched and make their way into the lineup and score a goal because it’s about the badge and the team, not the individual.
“Everybody is training well, waiting for the opportunity. I didn’t start the first game. I went in maybe, I don’t know, 12 minutes, 30 minutes. Second game, I didn’t go in,” Vlasic said. “But you always believe, you always wait for your chance, train well, and wait for the coach to call you in. So I’m really happy that the coach, in such an important game, he put me in the game. So it tells you that he really trusts me. So I’m really happy about that.”
That balance and knowing roles is critical, and it offers a view into how Croatia was able to outperform expectations consistently. They’ll need to continue to do it facing tougher opposition, but for now, the job is done and they can rest and recover.
