Medjimurje Sustainable Tourism Proves Itself, Tourists Willing to Pay More
March the 28th, 2023 - Tourists from across the rest of Europe and indeed the world are ready to pay more for sustainable tourism, and the situation for Croatian tourism is no different. With visitors ready to fork out around 20 percent more, Medjimurje sustainable tourism stands out from the crowd.
As Poslovni Dnevnik/Marija Crnjak writes, as many as twenty years of dedicated and hard work at the level of the entire destination was needed for Medjimurje sustainable tourism to reach a level of sustainability that many are only just beginning to think about.
Confirmation that they're on the right track came back at the beginning of March at the ITB Berlin tourism fair, where beautiful Medjimurje County was declared a Green Destinations region and was awarded the silver Green Destination label. This made it the first region in all of Croatia and the fourth in the world to receive this certification.
''Green Destination'' is a globally recognised non-profit organisation that cooperates with 200 destinations across more than 80 countries of the world, and develops sustainable and responsible tourism in accordance with the principles of the United Nations (UN) and the goals of the Global Council for Sustainable Tourism.
Rudi Grula, the director of Medjimurje County's tourist board, and Nusa Korotaj, the director of the very well known Terme Sveti Martin, which generates an impressive 80 percent of tourist traffic in Medjimurje, spoke about how sustainability has become a lifestyle for the people of Medjimurje at the Place2Go tourist fair.
"The fact that sustainability has become imperative is also showcased by the new policy of the TUI group, which will no longer enter into contracts with hotels that don't have a sustainability certificate. In Medjimurje County, tourism makes up only 2% of the local economy and we see tourism as an activity that will improve the lives of the local population as well. That's why we can freely choose guests who are ready to pay 20% more for all of the services that are carried out in a sustainable way here,'' explained Grula. In the survey that preceded the certification process for Green Destination, as many as 80% of respondents, out of 60% of the total number of stakeholders in the county's tourism who responded to the survey, were in favour of introducing sustainable solutions.
The next step will be the introduction of the Good Travel brand, and a new analysis of the satisfaction level of locals is underway, which is being done for them by the Tourism Institute. The local tourist board frequently realises many projects with Terme Sveti Martin, which is the largest tourist entity in the entire county and also operates in a sustainable manner. For example, as Nusa Korotaj revealed, they have signed contracts with 25 OPGs (family farms) that supply Sveti Martin with local products, grown within a radius of 15 kilometres.
As many as 80% of employees working at Terme Sveti Martin are locals, and since many of them work the land, with the project ''Work, earn extra'', the company offered them to open their own OPGs and be priority suppliers, so that a waiter can also brag to his guests that they're eating zucchini that he grew himself.
Local products are more expensive than those we can purchase in retail chains, that's true, but this way we have foods we know the origin of and we know exactly who grew them, with extremely short supply chains. In addition, we support the surrounding restaurateurs, so we send our guests to eat at their restaurants, we also have packages in which guests can exchange dinner at our hotel for a local restaurant. In order to appreciate these locally grown foods even more, we introduced a programme to reduce food waste, after we determined that we were throwing 200 kilograms of food into the compost every single day. In order to reduce this, we reduced the number of plates at breakfast and reduced food waste by 40% on the first day," said Korotaj.
The road to sustainability is often paved with a lot of small steps, and the next one is to convince restaurateurs to stop serving biscuits wrapped in cellophane with their coffee, but rather to serve biscuits in bulk. At the same time, through promotion, they also educate the guests, who not only appreciate these solutions, but also look for them themselves. In fact, research by the Expedia portal showed that this year as many as 65% of travellers will look for some form of sustainable service in tourism, while companies will invest significantly more in marketing through which they show what they are doing to contribute to sustainable development.
For more, make sure to check out our news and travel sections.
Vinistra: Germans Loving Istrian Wines Exhibited at Dusseldorf ProWein Fair
March the 27th, 2023 - German visitors to the recently held ProWein fair in Dusseldorf have been loving wines from Croatia, with a particular emphasis having been placed on Istrian wines.
As Poslovni Dnevnik writes, the decision to present Istrian wine and its producers independently at the world's largest fair in the German city of Dusseldorf this year was nothing short of a complete success for Vinistra.
Over three intensive days, the representatives of thirteen well-known wineries, which were also supported by the prefect of Istria County, Boris Miletic, presented the rich offer of Istrian wines to German visitors. At an independent stand in Hall 12, along with big wine countries such as Portugal and Hungary, the Agrolaguna, Damjanic, Medea, Fakin, Meneghetti, Pervino, Cattunar, Rossi, Bertosa, Kozlovic, Benvenuti, Matosevic and Frankovic were presented at Vinistra's stand.
"ProWein has once again showed that it is the leading international trade fair in the wine and spirits sector. I'm extremely pleased by the great interest of wine professionals in Istrian wines, especially in our Malvasia and Terano varieties. This is primarily the result of the top quality of our wines, but also of the intensive promotional activities that we undertake as an association in key markets.
We may not have large areas under vineyards like some of the world's most famous wine regions, but the quality of Istrian wines is absolutely not lagging behind the best, which was confirmed this year at ProWein,'' said Luka Rossi, president of Vinistra, the association of winegrowers and winemakers of Istria.
From March the 19th to the 21st, the entire global wine market was presented at the Dusseldorf fair, almost six thousand exhibitors from more than 60 countries exhibited what they had to offer, and 49 thousand business visitors from as many as 141 countries visited it over those three days.
For more, make sure to check out our dedicated news section.
Two Croatian Destinations Listed Among 25 of Europe's Most Beautiful Places
March the 27th, 2023 - Two stunning Croatian destinations have found themselves ranked among 25 of Europe's most beautiful places by Travel+Leisure magazine.
As Poslovni Dnevnik writes, the travel magazine Travel+Leisure recently presented a list of what it considers to be the 25 most beautiful places in Europe, which includes destinations from small towns to secret beaches, writes Klixba.
"Throughout this continent, and sometimes quite nearby to it, there are countless colorful small towns, magnificent castles, Roman ruins, church buildings, medieval castles, sparkling lagoons and secluded beaches," writes Travel+Leisure magazine presenting the list of the 25 most beautiful places in Europe.
"Although it isn't difficult to come across (or look for) a photogenic destination, defining the most beautiful places in all of Europe is a bit more difficult because there are so many of them,'' they added, pointing out that if you want to choose a place with endless photographic potential, they recommend the following destinations.
The first place on the list was taken by Villa Ruffolo in a small town on the Amalfi coast (Italy), and the top three are Egremni beach (Lefkada, Greece), Pena Palace (Sintra, Portugal).
Destinations from Croatia's most immediate neighboyrhood were also on the list, and Gospa od Skrpjela in Montenegro took an impressive fourth place.
When it comes to Croatian destinations, the magazine singles out the country's oldest and largest national park - Plitvice Lakes, and of course, the southern Dalmatian city of Dubrovnik. While rather obvious and sometimes overdone choices when it comes to the enormous offer of jaw-dropping places Croatia boasts, the portal considers both of them to be among the most beautiful in all of Europe.
"The search for the bluest water in the world leads travellers to many photogenic places, including the famous Croatian Plitvice Lakes National Park. Located halfway between Zagreb and Zadar, this natural wonderland delights more than a million visitors every year with its crystal clear lakes, waterfalls, caves and lush forests," writes Travel+Leisure.
For Dubrovnik, Croatia's tourist Mecca, they point out that a mandatory activity on every trip to the pearl of the Adriatic is "a walk along the iconic walls of Dubrovnik", which offers visitors an incomparable perspective of its protective fortifications, bastions and towers, plus its recognisable red roofs, clear blue sea and nearby islands.
While we certainly agree that both Dubrovnik and Plitvice Lakes National Park are absolutely gorgeous, it might be time to let the abundant offer of stunning Croatian destinations up and down this country take the throne from time to time.
For more, check out our news section.
Croatian Cyclists to Get Boost with 167 Million Euro Investment
March the 27th, 2023 - Great news for Croatian cyclists, that is if we're to believe the official part line as it were, as investments totalling 167 million euros are set to be poured into new infrastructure and safety.
As Poslovni Dnevnik/Jadranka Dozan writes, if promises from the National Plan for the Development of Bicycle Transport are to be believed, Croatian cyclists are set to be much better off, both in terms of overall infrastructure upgrades and in terms of general safety. In the proposal of the National Plan, investments in this field totalling almost 167 million euros between the years 2023 and 2027 have been defined
In addition to the modernisation of the existing infrastructure (which is desperately needed, especially here in Zagreb) and the construction of more new cycling infrastructure, part of the planned investments are also aimed at increasing safety, for which 1.82 million euros should be invested over the next four to five years.
All together, all of these investments and improvements should result in an increase in the number of Croatian cyclists all over the country. According to surveys of travel habits conducted for the purposes of creating the National Traffic Model (back in 2016), the amount of Croatian cyclists using their bikes as their main means of transport was below the EU average.
According to the comparative data referred to by the authors of the analysis, the daily use of bicycles for the EU member states amounted to about eight percent for the reference year, and six percent in Croatia, while the Netherlands (36%) and Denmark (23%) had the largest share of bicycle use.
To reach the European Union average, investments are needed across all segments of bicycle traffic, from infrastructure as a prerequisite for safety and the expansion of the range of services (a system of public bicycles, parking and other accompanying facilities), to the promotion and education of future road users.
The draft proposal for the National Plan for the Development of Bicycle Traffic 2023-2027 was prepared for the competent ministry (transport) by the Faculty of Transport Sciences in Zagreb in cooperation with its partners, and it has been put to public debate for a month now. For the purposes of its creation, data was collected on the "modal distribution of bicycle trips". They make up 3% in Zagreb, 8.3% in Slavonski Brod, 8% in Sisak, 6% in Zadar, and Varazdin has the largest share, 26%. However, the fact that in the end, data on this was obtained for only 5 of the 29 largest Croatian cities (with more than 20,000 inhabitants living in them) points to challenges in the systematic collection, processing and analysis of traffic indicators in most cities.
The National Plan is based on the strategic goals of the EU in the field of green and sustainable mobility and the goals of several strategies Croatia currently has in the field of transport, tourism, environmental protection, healthcare and sport. The National Recovery and Resilience Plan also mentions encouraging bike traffic in several places.
The bike market here in Croatia is generally growing, and this statement in the analysis is supported by data from the CBS on the number of imported/exported bicycles from 2010 to 2020, which show that in recent years, imports accounted for about 100 thousand classic bicycles (without electric motors), and exports accounted for about 30 thousand.
Over more recent years, bicycles with electric motors have become increasingly prominent. For example, in 2020, 38,000 e-bikes were imported and 13,000 were exported, while back in 2016, around 5,000 were imported and 700 were exported. The demand for bikes in this country also speaks volumes about the potential for their greater use as a means of transportation, the authors conclude.
Among other things, public bicycle systems are an excellent complement to bus, tram, railway and other public transport systems, they noted, adding that their role is to make these systems more accessible to users. Back at the beginning of 2021, a public bicycle service was available in 33 Croatian cities, with 219 stations and over 1,350 bicycles on offer to the public.
For more, check out our news section.
Dazzle Does Dubrovnik: New Comic from Andrew Villone
March 26, 2023 - Dubrovnik is portrayed in many different ways around the globe. Meet the latest - in comic form - with Andrew Villone's Dazzle Does Dubrovnik.
Andrew Villone hails from Seattle and lives in Koper. He has his own tour company, branded under Adventures With Sarah, and has spent the last 18 years running boutique tours around Croatia, Slovenia and SE Europe. Last December, he published the first issue of his comic, Dazzle.
From tour operator to comic book creator, I’ve heard that one so many times….
I have a great gig running my own tours but coming out of the pandemic it became quite clear that there needed to more to my life than just travel and business. And when you get to a certain age, you want to do more with your life, not less. I had this idea for a film the past 25 years, just buried away in my brain. At some point I knew I didn’t want to take it to the grave with me so I unpacked it and realized there was much more there than just the original idea.
Since I started down this path about 15 months ago, it continues to snowball, in a very good way. It’s taking on a life of its own. Only two issues into it and I have come to the most obvious and irrefutable conclusion: anything is possible, if you want it.
What is the overall idea of Dazzle?
Here’s what we call the elevator pitch: A young girl in search of her identity runs away to a globe-trotting circus fuelled by magic. There she will need to find both her dysfunctional family and her true self under this strange big top filled with outcasts, dreamers, assassins, charlatans, monsters and angels. When the circus lights dim, the real magic begins. This is the world of Dazzle.
Pitch aside, I believe Dazzle is more of a love story or a series of love stories with a healthy dose of fantasy elements and some bat-shit-crazy, audacious set pieces. That’s what you get by watching a myriad of cult classics and Hong Kong films for the past 40 years. It’s definitely a character-driven story, not aplot-driven one.
What’s the storyline of this issue and how did it come about?
Oh, you know, just your typical garden-variety scenario: human cannonball ball performer from the circus sees beautiful girl flying stunt plane, they fall in love, bura wind hits, tragedy strikes, girl decides to change her destiny and be part of a traveling circus where you never die.
When I started writing it last August I didn’t know exactly which storyline would follow this one. Everything is much more clear now that I have all 30 synopses written. But at the time, I needed to have more a self-contained story with this issue. And since the first issue was quite vague and mysterious, I decided to do something more straightforward and try my hand at a love story. I also wanted to focus on a few characters and since we jump between different time periods it acts a bit like an origins story without actually being one.
Why did you set the new issue in Dubrovnik?
I’ve seen a fair number of places in the world and Dubrovnik has got to be one of the Top 5 most beautiful cities. The main character in the new issue, Raga, was inspired by someone from there that I met. We had a chat about films and it just struck me at that moment how much I missed this part of me, which used to be terribly integral to my identity. It was definitely the kick in the pants I needed. So you can say some of the seeds of Dazzle were born right here.
Why did you set it in the past (1920’s)?
Since the comic is set in various time periods and we jump around in history, I needed part of this story to be set in an earlier time. Someone who would love to fly could be a biplane pilot from this era and then later transition into being the human cannonball performer at the circus. When I was designing the character of Raga, I thought about the character of Rachael in Blade Runner who has that gorgeous 1940’s noir vibe. I didn’t want to copy that so 1920’s era art nouveau wasn’t such a bad second choice.
How did Dubrovnik inspire you?
It’s always the walls, right? First thing that jumps out to anyone visiting here. I needed a set piece for one of the main characters and jumping off the walls into the Adriatic, well, how could I resist? Also, seeing Rector’s Palace I’ve imagined it as a fab set for some sort of gala or ball so we used it as a setting for a Gatsby-esque party.
What are your connections with Croatia (and between your comic and Croatia)?
I started traveling here 23 years ago. The city walls had more seagulls than tourists on them back in January 2000. And there’s definitely a love affair with me and the atmosphere & settings of so many cities. Did I mention the wine and food? Igor, the artist who did many of the character designs and pencilled the first issue, is a good friend of mine from Istria. The whole Dazzle as an ‘epic comic book story’ started one night by getting drunk with him on some Teran. I suppose I could get into trouble with some of my Slovenian friends with that last comment…
You work in tourism, can you recommend some of your favorite spots in or near Dubrovnik?
Kopun (Dubrovnik) — That’s where I always eat. Pašticada or Dubrovnik capon - cannot go wrong. Wine selection here is tops.
Bartulović (Peljesac) — Organic wines and goulash with freshly killed wild boar (shot in the vineyards too I might add) - yes please!
Križ wines (Peljesac) — I loved their macerated Grk so much that they are in both issues of the comic.
M’arden wine bar (Dubrovnik) — will be ‘top shit’ as we say in Slovenia. LINKS
Dazzle FB link — www.facebook.com/Dazzlecircus
Dazzle IG link — www.instagram.com/dazzle_circus_comic/
AWS link — https://adventureswithsarah.net/
Art in Situ link — www.facebook.com/ArtinSituMotovun Kopun — www.restaurantkopun.com
Bartulović — www.vinarijabartulovic.hr Križ winery — http://vinarijakriz.com/en/
Video links https://youtu.be/rU1SYujk7jo https://youtu.be/rDor2NU_hRs
Ryanair Posts Impressive Zagreb Results, Airport Eyes 16 New Routes
March 26, 2023 - Ryanair posts some impressive Zagreb results for 2022, as Zagreb Airport launches incentives for airlines to connect to an additional 16 destinations.
For years, Zagreb did not have a low-cost carrier of note, save for a couple of (often seasonal) routes.
The arrival of Ryanair, which established a base in the Croatian capital in 2021, changed all that.
The strongest challenge that Croatia Airlines has perhaps faced, the Irish airline started with a very impressive schedule, connecting Zagreb dozens of destinations all over Europe.
Last year, the low-cost carrier noted:
“Currently, we are really satisfied with the majority of the markets served out of Zagreb. For example, the UK market performs really well, as well as Ireland with the Dublin route. Then we see German markets, Swedish markets … so we are very happy with the current demand. There are some tourist destinations in the future that are of interest to us too. We really believe that Zagreb can be attractive all-year round, not just for families and the diaspora, but for tourists as well, so we want to use all these opportunities in the future”.
And it seems that not only has Ryanair been a big success, but Zagreb Airport has announced incentives to attract flights to 16 additional destinations.
As ExYuAviation reports, Ryanair served some 816,500 passengers on 23 of its 27 Zagreb routes last year, in numbers recently posted. More than 100,000 of those were carried on the most successful route - from London Stansted to Zagreb, followed by Bergamo, Charleroi, Malta and Gothenburg. Data for two routes the Irish carrier competes with Croatia Airlines - Rome and Dublin - were not posted, and seasonal routes to Brindisi and Corfu were also missing. The routes with the east traffic were Sofia, Bratislava, Sandefjord, and Thessaloniki.
Meanwhile, Zagreb Airport will introduce a new incentive scheme on June 1, aiming to connect more European capitals.
“The Connecting Capital Cities Incentive Model is designed to link Zagreb to unserved capital cities located in the European Common Aviation Area (ECAA) member states, as well as Georgia, Armenia, Ukraine and Moldova, which have signed a Common Aviation Area Agreement with the European Union”, the airport said. Routes that will be eligible for incentives are those from Zagreb to Prague, Tallinn, Berlin, Budapest, Riga, Vilnius, Luxembourg, Stockholm (Arlanda or Skavsta airports), Tirana, Pristina, Reykjavik, Tbilisi, Kiev, Chisinau and Yerevan.
The low-cost airline revolution in Croatia continues.
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You can subscribe to the Paul Bradbury Croatia Expert YouTube channel here.
What is it like to live in Croatia? An expat for 20 years, you can follow my series, 20 Ways Croatia Changed Me in 20 Years, starting at the beginning - Business and Dalmatia.
Follow Paul Bradbury on LinkedIn.
Croatia, a Survival Kit for Foreigners is now available on Amazon in paperback and on Kindle.
One More Milestone: Croatia's Airports Join the Schengen Zone
March 26, 2023 - One more milestone for Croatia, as its airports officially join the Schengen Zone. Internal flight to Paris, anyone?
There are many ways of looking at Croatia and its progress as a young democracy. Today was the latest milestone.
One of them is in milestones. There have been quite a few over the last decade or so.
2009 - Croatia joins NATO.
2013 - Croatia joins the European Union.
2022 - Croatia gets visa-free travel to the United States.
2022 - Croatia signs double taxation agreement with the United States.
2022 - The Peljesac Bridge opens, connecting Croatia into one contiguous country.
2023 - January 1 - Croatia joins the Euro.
2023 - January 1 - Croatia joins the Schengen Zone.
While land borders to neighbouring countries such as Hungary and Slovenia were abolished at the beginning of the year, passport control remained in place in Croatian airports for EU flights until today, March 26.
Those controls have now been abolished, and Croatia has become the 27th full Schengen Zone member - the others are the 23 EU countries, plus Iceland, Norway, Switzerland and Liechtenstein. Only four EU countries are now outside the Schengen Zone - Bulgaria, Romania, Cyprus and Ireland.
The power of the Croatian passport is certainly rising, and this post-Brexit Brit can only look on with envy.
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You can subscribe to the Paul Bradbury Croatia Expert YouTube channel here.
What is it like to live in Croatia? An expat for 20 years, you can follow my series, 20 Ways Croatia Changed Me in 20 Years, starting at the beginning - Business and Dalmatia.
Follow Paul Bradbury on LinkedIn.
Croatia, a Survival Kit for Foreigners is now available on Amazon in paperback and on Kindle.
Looking for a Job in Croatia? This Week's Top 10 from Posao.hr (March 26, 2023)
March 26, 2023 - Looking for a job in Croatia? A new weekly feature on TCN, in partnership with leading job site agency, Posao.hr, who present a selection of weekly job listings.
How hard is it to find a job in Croatia, and what is on offer?
We spoke to Ines Bokan, director of leading jobs site Posao.hr, who kindly took the time for this excellent interview overview.
This week's top 10 jobs from Posao.hr:
posao.hr is hiring a person in the position sales consultant (m/f). Place of work Zagreb. We offer the possibility of earning a salary bonus. Send complete applications via link by March 27th.
Jet2.com Limited is hiring a person in the position of Customer Service Agent (m/f). Place of work Dubrovnik. They offer a competitive salary as well as fully paid training and progression opportunities, along with one-to-ones and coaching. Send complete applications via link by April 12th.
AA Euro Croatia d.o.o. is looking for a QA/QC Manager (m/f) in Zagreb. They offer a competitive salary depending on qualifications and an opportunity to work with a skilled team of professionals. Apply by April 10th via link.
Strabag BRVZ d.o.o. is hiring a person in the position of Senior Backend Developer (m/f/d) in Zagreb. If you are interested in a job, apply by April 12th via link.
AGV Group Malta is looking for a Nurse (m/f) and a Personal assistant (m/f) in Malta. Candidate must have good knowledge of the Italian language. Apply by April 21st via link.
Adecco Hrvatska is looking for an HR Manager (m/f) in Zagreb. They offer an opportunity for further learning and professional development. Send complete applications via link by March 29th.
Hotech Balkan is looking for a Customer Support Specialist (m/f) for remote work. They offer market-competitive compensation and benefits with flexible working arrangements. Apply by April 2nd via link.
CCPORTER Sp. z o.o. is hiring a person in the position of Sales Trainer with Croatian and English (m/f) for work from home. They offer attractive remuneration and an opportunity to develop coaching skills. If you are interested in a job, apply by April 21st via link.
Endress+Hauser is looking for a Regional Business Development Manager (m/f) in Zagreb. They offer a stimulating and dynamic work environment, travel allowance, payment of special awards (Easter, Christmas, and children's awards), and other benefits. Apply by March 27th via link.
Intuita Consulting / Intuita Europe d.o.o. is looking for a Full Stack Development Technical Leader (m/f) in Šibenik. The employer offers flexible and remote working, incredible learning opportunities, and a friendly team that provides mutual support. Send complete applications via link by March 28th.
Salzburg AG is looking for a SOC Security Analyst / Specialist (m/f) in Salzburg, Austria. They offer an attractive salary, flexible working hours, flat hierarchies and modern workspaces, and other benefits. If you are interested in a job, apply by March 31st via link.
For more career options and job listings, visit posao.hr.
These weekly job listings will appear in the weekly TCN newsletter - you can subscribe here.
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What is it like to live in Croatia? An expat for 20 years, you can follow my series, 20 Ways Croatia Changed Me in 20 Years, starting at the beginning - Business and Dalmatia.
Follow Paul Bradbury on LinkedIn.
Croatia, a Survival Kit for Foreigners is now available on Amazon in paperback and on Kindle.
EURO 2024 Qualifiers: Croatia and Wales Share Points at Poljud (1-1)
March 25, 2023 - Croatia opened the EURO 2024 qualifiers with a draw against Wales after a last-minute goal leveled the score to 1-1.
The Croatia national team open the EURO 2024 qualifiers at Poljud Stadium on Saturday against Wales. It was Croatia's first appearance after the magnificent bronze medal result at the 2022 World Cup in Qatar.
The great atmosphere at Poljud before the match was led by Tomislav Bralić and Klapa Intrade, who sang their biggest hits to warm up the fans. All fans were also greeted at their seats with a commemorative Croatia scarf displaying the motifs of the already widely known Vatreni jerseys in white or blue variants. Poljud was sold out for tonight's match with 33,474 in attendance.
Croatia was in an almost unchanged lineup compared to Qatar. After the World Cup, Dejan Lovren said goodbye to the national team, and Bruno Petković did not play today due to an injury.
Three days after Wales, Croatia will visit Turkey to continue their qualifications for the 2024 European Championship.
Lineups
CROATIA: Livaković - Juranović, Šutalo, Gvardiol, Sosa - Modrić, Kovačić, Brozović - Kramarić, Livaja, Perišić
WALES: Ward - Roberts, Mepham, Rodon, Williams - Ampadu, Wilson, Ramse, Morrell - Moore, James
Match report
Croatia had its first attack and shot on goal at 2:33. Gvardiol found Modric alone just outside the box. Luka's shot was saved by the keeper and resulted in Croatia's first corner kick.
Another chance for Croatia in the 6th minute. Perisic crossed into the box for Livaja which deflected off the Wales keeper. It was another corner for Croatia. Five minutes later Juranovic launched a ball into the penalty area, but no Croatia player was there in time.
Kova and Krama had a great attack three minutes later. Krama found Perisic on the left, but the ball had too much speed.
Wales had their first corner in the 14th minute. Kramaric nailed a rocket at the Wales keeper a minute after that which went out for Croatia's third corner.
Croatia possessed well and gave Wales little chance to control the game. Croatia was the first to every ball.
Perisic has an excellent attempt in the 24th minute but shot wide of the goal. But Perisic had the best chance two minutes later when a powerful strike found the back of the net. Unfortunately, the ref called a foul on the attack, and the game remained 0-0.
It didn't take long for Croatia to take the lead after that. In the 28th minute, Kramaric magically moved through the Wales defense and shot at the right post for 1-0 Croatia!
Juranovic was shown a yellow card in the 30th minute.
Luka's volley attempt in the 35th minute went just wide of the goal. Sosa tried shooting right-footed two minutes later but weakly shot at the keeper. Croatia was wholly dominating this game.
Wales was given a dangerous free kick in the 43rd minute. Kramaric selfishly shot over the post in the 45th minute when Perisic was alone in the box. The game ended 0-0 at the half.
There were no changes to start the second half.
A brilliant chance for Croatia in the 49th saw Kova alone in front of the keeper with an open goal but shot over.
Livaja was subbed off in the 52nd minute with an injury. Petar Musa came on in his place for his first official debut for the national team.
Sosa played Perisic in the box in the 55th minute, but he shot at the keeper. Wales had the best chance of the match in the 60th minute. James was left alone in the box but fortunately missed the goal.
Wales made its first 3 subs in the. 63rd minute.
A brilliant attack from Croatia up the left wing in the 65th minute. Sosa played Perisic who found Musa. Musa's shot went wide of the goal.
Wales made their fourth sub in the 70th minute.
Vlasic and Pasalic were subbed on for Kramaric and Kovacic in the 75th minute.
Croatia continued to dominate in the second half even though Wales had a few chances. Croatia had back-to-back corners in the 77th minute and even hit the post five minutes later!
Three minutes of stoppage time were added.
Unfortunately, seconds after Modric was subbed off, Croatia's defense fell asleep, and Broadhead equalized for 1-1.
The match ended 1-1.
Croatia plays Turkey next away in Bursa on March 28.
To follow the latest sports news in Croatia, follow TCN's dedicated page.
American Company Jabil Building Osijek Centre, Set to Employ 1500
March the 24th, 2023 - The American company Jabil is constructing a large centre in Eastern Croatia, more specifically in Osijek, where it will employ 1500 people.
As 24sata/Martina Vidaic writes, one of the world's largest providers of production solutions, the American company Jabil Inc., recently announced the construction of a new large center of excellence for production in the Croatian city of Osijek.
The completion of the construction of the production facility is scheduled for the beginning of 2024, and the brand new centre is expected to quickly become a key driver of the local economy, creating more than 1,500 new jobs for skilled workers. When the new centre of excellence for production starts operating, the American company Jabil will become one of the largest employers in all of Slavonia, and provide the local community with opportunities for both growth and development - the company's press release states.
The American company Jabil was founded back in 1966 across the pond over in the USA, and currently has more than 250,000 employees working a hundred different locations in 30 countries, and they've now actively started looking for workers in and around Osijek. On their website Osijek Hiring - Jabil explains in detail who they are looking for and what they can offer them.
''Business expansion is a strategic decision that is in line with Jabil's focus on long-term trends and growth in the areas of renewable energy, electric vehicles, healthcare, the 5G network and the Cloud. The new facility will be the very heart of Jabil's ongoing commitment to innovation, sustainability and providing comprehensive manufacturing solutions to its customers,'' said Gerald "JJ" Creadon, Jabil's Executive Vice President of Operations.
They are also planning to open a factory for the production of medical prosthetic parts, microchips and motherboards for the automotive industry, which means a strong business momentum for that entire region.
''Recruitment of the workforce for the new centre of excellence for production in Osijek has already begun and will continue throughout 2023. Management and engineering positions are currently open, as well as a number of positions in operations, supply chain, finance and human resources. Our company is focused on the future and boasts a diverse portfolio of industrial operations. We'd like everyone interested to contact us, regardless of whether they have recently graduated or have years of work experience behind them,'' stated Robin Forster, the senior director of regional human resources at Jabil.
