The best Croatian players ever

A nation with a population roughly half that of London, Croatia has perennially punched above its weight in the world of football.

Just six years after declaring independence from Yugoslavia, they put their iconic checkerboard shirts firmly on the map by finishing third on their World Cup debut in 1998; 20 years later, they went even further by reaching the final.

It rather goes without saying, then, that this small Balkan country has produced its fair share of top talent – and we're going to guide you through the very best of it...

Croatia’s first-choice goalkeeper at the 2022 World Cup, Dominik Livakovic became just the 15th player ever to receive a perfect 10/10 rating from notoriously critical French newspaper L’Equipe – for his heroic performance in his country’s quarter-final win over Brazil.

A multiple Croatian champion with the nation’s biggest club, Dinamo Zagreb, Livakovic joined Turkish giants Fenerbahce in 2023.

One of Harry Redknapp’s favourites – signing for him three times at three different clubs – Niko Kranjcar spent the best years of his career in the Premier League, most memorably starring for Portsmouth – with whom he won the FA Cup in 2008.

Capped 81 times by Croatia, the versatile attacking midfielder featured at one World Cup and two Euros.

Vedran Corluka played alongside compatriot Kranjcar for Redknapp’s Tottenham, helping them to the 2010/11 Champions League quarter-finals.

A reliable centre-half who could also operate at right-back, Corluka – who also turned out for Manchester City and Lokomotiv Moscow, among others – won 103 caps for his country and was part of the squad which reached the 2018 World Cup final against France.

A lightning-fast winger capable of tearing full-backs to shreds with his dazzling dribbling when at his best, Ante Rebic starred in Croatia’s historic run to the 2018 World Cup final.

Frustratingly inconsistent, but hugely entertaining and effective in full flow, the ex-Milan man – a 2021/22 Serie A champion – warrants a place on this list.

Croatia’s number one for many years, Stipe Pletikosa finished his international career with 114 caps to his name.

Playing most of his club football in his homeland and Russia, the six-foot-four custodian appeared at three World Cups – the first in 2002, when he won Croatian Footballer of the Year – and two Euros.

Born in Brazil, Eduardo was scouted by Dinamo Zagreb as a teenager and ended up playing U21 and senior football for Croatia – scoring 29 goals in 64 full international caps overall.

The striker’s prolific form for Zagreb earned him the 2006 Croatian Footballer of the Year award and a big move to Arsenal – where he started promisingly but struggled to regain top form after suffering a horrific broken leg.

A title winner in multiple countries at club level, adaptable centre-back Domagoj Viva was a mainstay of the Croatian national team for a good decade.

Another 2018 World Cup runner-up, Vida – instantly spottable with his trademark ponytail – continued to feature prominently as Zlatko Dalic’s side finished third four years later.

Born in Bosnia and Herzegovina to Bosnian Croat parents, Dejan Lovren endured a tumultuous early childhood – fleeing the Bosnian War with his family and ultimately settling in Croatia.

He went on to play a key role in defence en route to the 2018 World Cup final, before helping Jurgen Klopp’s Liverpool to Champions League and Premier League success.

Named Croatian Footballer of the Year three years running from 2003 to 2005, towering striker Dado Prso was one of the stars of Monaco’s run to the final of the 2003/04 Champions League – during which he memorably scored four goals in an 8-3 group-stage thrashing of Deportivo La Coruna.

The dynamic target man, who finished his career at Rangers, represented Croatia at Euro 2004 and the 2006 World Cup.

The youngest player on this list, Josko Gvardiol still hasn’t peaked at the time of writing – but we’re confident that he’ll go down as one of the best centre-backs of his generation.

A complete player, the left-footed Manchester City star broke the world transfer record for a defender when he arrived from RB Leipzig for £77m in 2023 – having been among the standout youngsters at the 2022 World Cup.

Starting six of Croatia’s seven games at the 2018 World Cup, Sime Vrsaljko was his nation’s go-to right-back for much of the 2010s and earned 52 caps in all.

An attack-minded full-back who was never afraid to get stuck in, Vrsaljko won the LaLiga title and Europa League with Diego Simeone’s Atletico Madrid.

Croatia’s greatest goalkeeper, Danijel Subasic lined up between the sticks at the 2018 World Cup – having previously been number one at Euro 2016.

A routinely safe pair of hands, the six-foot-three shot-stopper made the bulk of his club appearances for Monaco – where he won second-tier and top-flight titles and was named 2016/17 Ligue 1 Goalkeeper of the Year.

An integral component of Croatia’s historic World Cup debut of 1998 – when they finished third, having given hosts and eventual winners France a scare in the semis – Slaven Bilic was a highly consistent defender who earned 44 caps between 1992 and 1999.

Remembered in England for his spells at West Ham – who he later managed – and Everton, Bilic tasted league and cup glory with Hajduk Split in his homeland.

The younger of the two footballing Kovac brothers, Robert Kovac was born in Berlin to Bosnian Croat parents – and the centre-back went on to spend almost his entire career in Germany, winning two Bundesliga titles and two DFB-Pokal (German Cup) crowns with Bayern Munich.

Capped 84 times by Croatia, Kovac featured at the 2002 and 2006 World Cups, and the 2004 and 2008 European Championships.

A regular throughout the 90s, wing-back Robert Jarni was among his country’s biggest stars during their formative years on the global stage.

Having played for Yugoslavia at the 1990 World Cup, Jarni – who did the Italian double with Juventus and later turned out for Real Madrid – won 81 caps for Croatia, scoring his only international goal in their famous 3-0 victory over Germany in the quarter-finals of France 98.

The first Croatian player to win 100 caps – retiring from international football shortly after reaching that milestone – Dario Simic was a dominant defender capable of operating across the back line.

A member of three World Cup and three Euros squads, Simic played for both Inter and Milan – winning the Scudetto, Coppa Italia and two Champions Leagues with the latter.

Back-to-back Croatian Footballer of the Year in 2009 and 2010, Ivica Olic was a powerful forward with a knack for scoring big goals in big games.

Primarily deployed through the middle but also adept as a winger, Olic – who netted at two World Cups 12 years apart (2002 and 2014) – secured Bayern Munich’s place in the 2010 Champions League final with a perfect hat-trick against Lyon.

A two-time Serie A champion and a Champions League runner-up at Juventus, the enormous Igor Tudor’s natural defensive talent put him up there with Europe’s best centre-halves of the early 20th century.

Injuries afflicted him throughout his career, but there was no denying his abilities – and he represented Croatia with distinction on 55 occasions, featuring at the 1998 and 2006 World Cups.

A hugely accomplished midfielder, Aljosa Asanovic rose to prominence in the final years of the Yugoslav First League with hometown club Hajduk Split.

Scorer of Croatia’s first goal post-independence, Asanovic shone at Euro 96 and the 1998 World Cup – providing a stunning assist for Davor Suker to put his side 1-0 up against France in the semis of the latter – and starred in the Premier League for Derby County.

Among the world’s best defensive midfielders when on top form, Marcelo Brozovic formed a strong double pivot with Ivan Rakitic at the 2018 World Cup.

One of Croatia’s most-capped players, the feisty Brozovic made more than 300 appearances for Inter – where he won the 2020/21 Scudetto and the Coppa Italia on two occasions, as well as being named Serie A’s Best Midfielder in 2021/22.

An integral member of the legendary Red Star Belgrade team who lifted the European Cup in 1991, Robert Prosinecki was among the finest Eastern European footballers of his era.

Immensely technically gifted, Prosinecki – who played for both Real Madrid and Barcelona, and won 49 Croatia caps – drew criticism for his inconsistency – but his playmaking prowess was unquestionable, and he finished fifth in the voting for the 1991 Ballon d’Or.

Up there with Croatia’s all-time leading goalscorers, Andrej Kramaric is the latest 2018 World Cup runner-up to appear on this list.

A lone striker by trade but adaptable enough to operate slightly deeper or out wide, the Hoffenheim legend – who hit the 100-goal mark within seven seasons of joining the Bundesliga outfit – has been compared with Croatian icon Davor Suker.

Exhibiting elite levels of versatility to thrive in all manner of midfield roles, Mateo Kovacic firmly established himself as one of Croatia’s standout stars during the late 2010s and early 2020s.

Involved at the 2018 World Cup – scoring in the 3-0 group-stage defeat of Argentina – Kovacic won three successive Champions Leagues with Real Madrid between 2016 and 2018, then added another crown with Chelsea in 2021.

Croatia’s third most-capped player, pulling on the shirt 134 times over the course of a 14-year international career, Darijo Srna makes this list as the country’s best ever defender.

A rampaging wing-back, Srna notched 49 goals in a club-record 536 appearances for Ukrainian powerhouse Shakhtar Donetsk – where he won the 2008/09 UEFA Cup and later wore the captain’s armband, just as he did for the national team.

Firmly assured of iconic status as skipper of the Croatia side which produced a stunning third-placed finish at the 1998 World Cup, Zvonimir Boban was a tactically intelligent midfielder who contributed creatively and defensively in equal measure.

A veteran of over 200 appearances for Milan – where he won the 1993/94 Champions League and four Serie A titles – Boban was named Croatian Footballer of the Year in 1991 and 1999.

Older brother of Robert, Niko Kovac was also born in Berlin and spent the vast majority of his career in Germany – featuring for two of the same clubs as his younger sibling, Bayer Leverkusen and Bayern Munich.

A wonderfully well-rounded defensive midfielder, he did the double with Bayern in 2002/03 and was capped 83 times by Croatia – scoring 14 goals and captaining them at two major tournaments.

Yet another leading light of Croatia’s 2018 World Cup runners-up, Ivan Rakitic chalked up 106 caps during a 12-year international career.

A fantastic playmaker who was once described as “one of the most underrated players in the world” by Jose Mourinho, Rakitic enjoyed immense club success with Barcelona – most notably doing the treble in 2014/15, after which he was bestowed with the honour of Croatian Footballer of the Year.

Croatian Footballer of the Year and fourth in the Ballon d’Or voting in 1993 – having spearheaded Marseille’s maiden Champions League triumph, bagging 29 goals in all competitions that season – Alen Boksic was a superbly complete forward.

Capped 40 times (although he missed France 98 through injury), Boksic later starred for Lazio and Juventus in Serie A, where he is regarded as one of the league’s best ever foreign players.

With 33 goals at 0.37 per game, Mario Mandzukic sits among the very highest scorers in the history of the Croatia national team.

A key player at the 2018 World Cup – where he scored in the final (and made history by putting through his own net in the same match), the ex-Bayern Munich and Juventus frontman – a 2012/13 European champion with Bayern – was an extraordinarily hard-working attacking colossus.

A left-winger by trade, Ivan Perisic could do plenty of damage from a whole variety of positions in his prime – helped in no small part by his world-class ambidexterity.

Capped well over 100 times by his country, the enduring Perisic – a major trophy winner with Inter and Bayern Munich, among others – played crucial creative roles in the runs to the 2018 World Cup final and 2022 World Cup semi-finals.

The greatest Croatian striker of all time and one of the finest centre-forwards of the 90s, Davor Suker racked up almost 300 career goals – including a record 45 in 68 caps for his country.

Prolific for Sevilla and Real Madrid – winning the 1997/98 Champions League with the latter – the devastating Suker top-scored at the 1998 World Cup, before finishing as runner-up to Zinedine Zidane for that year’s Ballon d’Or.

Who else? In a class of his own as the best Croatian footballer ever, and undoubtedly one of the greatest midfielders of all time from any country, Luka Modric pulled the strings at the elite level for the best part of two decades.

A multiple Champions League winner with Real Madrid, Modric – who is Croatia’s most-capped player by a country mile – captained his nation to final of the 2018 World Cup and claimed the Golden Ball as player of the tournament – before being honoured with the game’s ultimate individual accolade at the end of the year: the Ballon d’Or.