The idea "came straight from the heart", Golubic told AFP

Croatia captain Luka Modric said he would look to continue playing on despite his country's likely elimination from the European Championship after conceding a last-gasp goal in a 1-1 draw with Italy in their final Group B game on Monday.

Croatia coach Zlatko Dalic on Tuesday said his side "deserve more respect" for recent achievements, as they bid to bounce back from an opening Euro 2024 defeat by Spain.

Zlatko Dalic was left to apologise for Croatia's woeful Euro 2024 showing on Saturday against Spain, whose head coach Luis de la Fuente heaped praise on teenage star Lamine Yamal.

Spain and Croatia begin their Euro 2024 campaigns on Saturday with a rematch of last year's nervy UEFA Nations League final as they kick off the action in Group B, which also includes European champions Italy and surprise package Albania.

Croatia coach Zlatko Dalic announced Monday a preliminary 26-man squad for Euro 2024 to be led by veteran captain Luka Modric in his likely last major tournament before retirement from international football.

Cemeteries are indeed associated with grief and sadness. On top of that, a lot of people consider them to be eerie places to visit. However, cemeteries can also be incredibly enchanting. At its core, they are designed in a way to make visitors who come to pay tribute to their loved ones feel comfortable.

Spain coach Luis de la Fuente has quelled the doubts around him by leading his country to Nations League glory and ending a decade-long trophy drought.

Croatia coach Zlatko Dalic on Monday appealed to star midfielder Luka Modric to stay amid growing speculation the captain will retire from international football.

Spain midfielder Rodri was named the UEFA Nations League's Player of the Tournament after his side edged Croatia 5-4 in a penalty shootout at the Feyenoord Stadium on Sunday.

Dani Olmo turned in Alejandro Balde's driven low cross on 13 minutes in Malaga and Joselu scored twice on his Spain debut to give new coach Luis de la Fuente a victory in his first match in charge

As Croatia and Morocco pick up the pieces after their World Cup semi-finals defeats, the two teams will welcome the prospect of potentially leaving Qatar on a high when they square up in the third-place playoff on Saturday.

Morocco may have seen their dreams of a maiden World Cup final crushed at the hands of defending champions France, but coach Walid Regragui is happy to have guided his side to the stage, which was beyond the wildest imagination of the most fervent supporters before the tournament.

Win and you have a seat at the finals. Lose and you go home. In this high-risk and high-reward situation, we have only four teams left at the FIFA World Cup 2022 and Croatia amongst them have earned our respect a while ago. They have dismantled some big teams on their way to the road to the final. Here are 5 reasons why Croatia is a force to be reckoned with.

Croatia and Morocco are the surprise guests in the World Cup's final four but, as the Croatians discovered in 2018 and many other long-shot semi-finalists have before them, the two remaining steps to become world champions can be the steepest.

Legendary German footballer and a member of FIFA’s Technical Study Group (TSG), Jurgen Klinsmann, opined that Brazil made a mistake by not sending their best penalty takers in their quarterfinal defeat against Croatia. 

Real Madrid stalwart Luka Modric after yet another fine performance against Brazil in the quarter-final of FIFA World Cup 2022 in Qatar revealed that he sees glimpses of his club mentality in the Croatian side.

Croatia will not attempt to stop Argentina superstar Lionel Messi by man-marking him but instead will focus on immobilising the entire team in their World Cup semi-final on Tuesday, they said.

Croatia coach Zlatko Dalic pledged "this is not the end" after his team sensationally dumped Brazil out of the World Cup on penalties at the quarter-final stage on Friday.

Croatia stunned favourites Brazil to reach the World Cup semi-finals on Friday, winning 4-2 on penalties after a nailbiting last-eight tie finished 1-1 at the end of extra time.