March 20, 2022 - Croatia national team coach Zlatko Dalić has called up Osijek defender Mile Škorić and Dinamo Moscow midfielder Nikola Moro to the upcoming friendly matches against Slovenia and Bulgaria in Qatar.

The Croatia national football team will play two friendly matches later this month in Qatar, the host of the 2022 World Cup. The first match is scheduled for Saturday, March 26 at 3 pm against Slovenia. The second match will be played against Bulgaria on Tuesday, March 29 at 4 pm, both at the Education City Stadium in Doha.

These will be the first Croatia national team matches after qualifying for the 2022 World Cup and will serve as preparation for coach Zlatko Dalić and what awaits the team for the rest of the year. This tournament also serves as excellent preparation for the World Cup in Qatar, as the climate and stadiums will be tested. As far as tactics are concerned, Dalić will also test a new formation with three in the backline as there will be no room to experiment in the four Nations League matches in June.

"We'll try a new system with three in the back and we'll see how it works. We'll stick to our tactics so far, but now we have some training, so we will try something different," said Dalić ahead of the tournament. 

"We've tried putting three players in the back a couple of times, but now we have time and we want to try that system. Several of our players play it in their clubs and it could fit."

Dalić subsequently added two players from the reserves list, namely Mile Škorić from Osijek and Nikola Moro from Dinamo Moscow for the friendly matches against Slovenia and Bulgaria. Osijek defender Mile Škorić will join the national team at a gathering in Zagreb on Monday (March 21), while Dinamo Moscow midfielder Nikola Moro will arrive in Doha, where the 2018 World Cup finalists will arrive on Tuesday.

Source: HNS

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TCN recently announced that Zvonimir Boban left his role at FIFA to return to AC Milan as the club's Chief Football Officer. Now, in collaboration with Paolo Maldini, he is preparing a team that should compete for the biggest medals in Italy.

In all likelihood, this team should feature a strong Croatian contingent, and if all goes to plan, Boban is looking to bring four Croatian players to Milan this summer, reports Index.hr on June 27, 2019. 

Namely, the former Deputy Secretary General of FIFA is after Andrej Kramarić and Nikola Moro, and has allegedly already started negotiations, writes the Italian media. Additionally, AC Milan could even see the promising Josip Brekalo and Dejan Lovren.

"Now that Zvone is back in Milan, the club is back in a good position," said Andrej Kramarić’s agent recently about the possible transfer of the 28-year-old footballer who currently plays for Hoffenheim. While Milan is not the only club after the Croatian striker, by the sounds of it, they’re the closest to bringing him to Serie A. The transfer should amount to about 30 million euro.

Dinamo's Nikola Moro also has Boban’s interest, and Milan allegedly already sent an official offer to Maksimir, though the price the Italians will have to pay for the young Croat will inevitably be higher. Boban was also impressed by Josip Brekalo at the U21 Euros in San Marino. 

In Croatia’s final game against England, Brekalo scored two goals, which was all Boban needed to see to try to bring him over to the club this summer. 

It is known that the new Milan coach Giampaolo wants to play in the 3-5-2 formation, which requires another stopper. One of the leading candidates is yet another Croat, Dejan Lovren. The Liverpool defender has lost his place in the first 11, and it is not unlikely that he will soon find somewhere new to continue his career. So why not Milan?

This is just some of the Croatian transfer news, as Mateo Kovačić should sign with Chelsea today, Ivan Peršić could see a move to Arsenal, and Ivan Rakitić could be leaving his beloved Barcelona. 

To read more about sport in Croatia, follow TCN’s dedicated page.