Zlatko Dalić is a friendly man. At least he successfully manages to convey that impression to the people who meet him. That shouldn’t be too difficult for him these days at the World Cup in Qatar, after all, Croatia’s coach is successful himself. This Tuesday (8 p.m. CET, in the FAZ live ticker for the soccer World Cup, on ZDF and on MagentaTV) his team is in the semi-finals. With a victory over Argentina, the country with just under four million inhabitants would be where it was four years ago: in the World Cup final. However, France won at the time.
As an observer, however, one should not be fooled by the often friendly-looking Dalić, nor by what he says. It’s often about emotions. About patriotism. For sake. For fight. For courage. For pride. For suffering. And for triumph. You don’t have to overrate the verbal ballyhoo from the Balkans.
The Argentinians, who think they have the best midfielder in the world in Lionel Messi, should take a sentence from Dalić very seriously. “We have the best midfield in the world,” said the 56-year-old Dalić after beating Brazil in the quarter-finals.
At first glance, that came as a surprise as the focus was on striker Bruno Petković, who equalized in extra time, and goalkeeper Dominik Livaković, who saved on penalties. At second glance, however, the first-class midfield is striking. Opponents in the semifinals have the extraordinary Messi in their ranks, the Croatians have a number of extraordinary players: Luka Modrić, Marcelo Brozović and Mateo Kovačić. The many career successes make Modrić a star, but because he doesn’t aim for it, one can also say: The star is the midfield.
The greatest strength of these three players is that they have no weaknesses worth mentioning. They are valuable for both offense and defense. When it comes to setting up or scoring a goal, they are in the game. When it comes to defending your own goal, too. The specialization that has prevailed in professional football is missing. In return, the three prevail in almost every situation, no matter what is required. That’s why the Croatian midfield is so special.
Modric is doing everything right
The dominator among the three all-rounders is Real Madrid’s Luka Modrić. There are few players who find it worth taking their eyes off the ball and just chasing it. Croatia’s captain and record player Modrić is one of them. Lionel Messi walks. Cristiano Ronaldo laments. Neymar demands. Kylian Mbappé lurks. Modrić, the world footballer of 2018, does everything – and does it right.
He passes, he runs, he directs and he shoots, all at the right moment. He even fouls at the right moment. Therefore, what Dalić says about the 37-year-old Modrić should be taken seriously: “Before the World Cup, some people had written him off. Luka showed it to everyone. He lives for football.”
Brozović with smoker’s lungs
The endurance runner among the three all-rounders is Marcelo Brozović from Inter Milan. He has been playing for the Italians since 2015 and learned tactical finesse. The darts fan was always persistent – although there are photos of him showing a penchant for smoking.
Nobody ran more in a World Cup match than he did against Japan in the round of 16, which Croatia won on penalties. Previously, the friend of tattoos had traveled 16.7 kilometers. The 30-year-old overtook himself. The previous record of 16.3 kilometers comes from the 2018 World Cup semi-final against England.
Kovačić can hardly be separated from the ball
The dribbler among the three all-rounders is Mateo Kovačić from Chelsea. Modrić artfully passes the ball with his right outside instep. Similar technical skills of the 28-year-old Kovačić sometimes fall short in the Croatian fighting style.
Born in Linz, Austria, to Bosnian-Croat parents, he moved to the Dinamo Zagreb youth academy, where he was a playmaker. He learned tactics at Inter Milan, technique at Real Madrid and combat at Chelsea. There they love his technically fine shots on goal and the dribbling, where he can hardly be separated from the ball.
The same goes for Messi. He should lose himself in the magic midfield triangle of the Croatians. Against Brazil, Dalić thought up a special role for Modrić. The pursued Casemiro and thus switched off the opponent’s control center.
Now it should be Messi’s turn. “He doesn’t run much, he waits and when he gets the ball he has power,” says Dalić. “He won’t have the space he needs against us.” Argentina should also take these words from the coach very seriously. The tactic worked excellently in 2018 – Croatia won 3-0 in the World Cup preliminary round.
