MX23RW : Wednesday, June 26 19:04:29| >> :120:4733:4733:
[monks data]
Croatia national football team
Nations League | League Phase
Oct 12, 2018 at 7.45pm UK
 
England national football team

0-0

FT

How Croatia could line up against England

Sports Mole predicts how Croatia will line up in Friday's UEFA Nations League clash with England at the Stadion HNK Rijeka.

Croatia welcome England to the Stadion HNK Rijeka on Friday evening in the UEFA Nations League, three months on from their most recent meeting in the World Cup semi-finals.

The Vatreni came out on top in that huge showdown to reach the final of the competition, where they were beaten 4-2 by France at the Luzhniki Stadium.

A number of players have since called time on their international careers since that famous run to the final, however, and Croatia must now pick themselves up from a humbling 6-0 loss at the hands of Spain last month.

Ahead of Friday's visit of England in a behind-closed-doors match, Sports Mole looks at how Zlatko Dalic will set out his side.

Possible CRO XI vs. ENG

On top of having to make do without retired trio Danijel Subasic, Vedran Corluka and Mario Mandzukic, Dalic has also seen a number of players withdraw from this latest squad.

Inter Milan pair Sime Vrsaljko and Marcelo Brozovic are unavailable, while Lovre Kalinic and Borna Barisic have also picked up injuries.

In the absence of Subasic and Kalinic, Dalic must decide which of his rookie goalkeepers to choose from, with Dinamo Zagreb's Dominik Livakovic in line for just a second senior cap.

Dejan Lovren and Ante Rebic are back involved after sitting out the 6-0 loss to Spain, however, and in Ivan Perisic, Ivan Rakitic, Mateo Kovacic, Croatia have one of the most impressive midfields anywhere on the planet.

There is a huge Mandzukic-sized void that needs to be filled over the next few years, though, so one of Ivan Santini or Andrej Kramaric - possibly even both - will need to step up.

> Click here to see how England could line up for this fixture

ID:338306: cacheID:338306:1false2false3false:QQ:: from db desktop :LenBod:restore:4215:No Data Analysis info
Restore Data
Share this article now:
Croatia defender Sime Vrsaljko lies injured on the floor during his side's World Cup quarter-final with Russia
Read Next:
Vrsaljko ruled out of World Cup semi-final?
>
rhs 2.0
Euro 2024 fixtures header
Saturday, June 29
 
5pm
 
8pm
Sunday, June 30
Monday, July 1
 
5pm
Tuesday, July 2
 
8pm
Friday, July 5
Saturday, July 6
Tuesday, July 9
Wednesday, July 10
Sunday, July 14
Tables header RHS

Group A

TeamPWDLPTS
Q Germany Germany32107
Q Switzerland Switzerland31205
3 Hungary Hungary31023
4 Scotland flag Scotland30121

Group B

TeamPWDLPTS
Q Spain Spain33009
Q Italy Italy31114
3 Croatia Croatia30212
4 Albania national flag Albania30121

Group C

TeamPWDLPTS
Q England flag England31205
Q Denmark Denmark30303
Q Slovenia Slovenia30303
4 Serbia Serbia30212

Group D

TeamPWDLPTS
Q Austria Austria32016
Q France France31205
Q Netherlands Netherlands31114
4 Poland Poland30121

Group E

TeamPWDLPTS
Q Romania Romania41215
Q Slovakia Slovakia41215
Q Belgium Belgium31114
4 Ukraine Ukraine31114

Group F

TeamPWDLPTS
Q Portugal Portugal22006
2 Turkey Turkey21013
3 Czech Republic Czech Republic20111
4 Georgia Georgia20111


Sports Mole provides in-depth previews and predictions for every match from the biggest leagues and competitions in world football.
Argentina's Lionel Messi kisses the World Cup trophy after collecting the Golden Ball award on December 18, 2022Sign up for our FREE daily preview newsletter direct to your inbox!