Rakitic blow for Croatia

By Afp, Barcelona
4 October 2016, 18:00 PM
UPDATED 5 October 2016, 16:39 PM
Croatia's midfield general Ivan Rakitic has pulled out of World Cup qualifiers against Kosovo and Finland because of a painful

Croatia's midfield general Ivan Rakitic has pulled out of World Cup qualifiers against Kosovo and Finland because of a painful achilles tendon, his club Barcelona said on Tuesday.

The loss is a major headache for Croatia coach Ante Cacic because his other top midfielder, Real Madrid's Luka Modric, has already been ruled out of the games on Thursday and Sunday by a knee injury.