The Croatian national team plays against England at 6 pm at the Rujevic stadium in a match of the third round of the elite group of the League of Nations. Both teams enter the clash with three points each from the first two matches.
Head coach Slaven Billić has changed the lineup, starting with Musić and Ivanović instead of Luka Sučić and Budimir. Croatia thus starts with: Livaković - Stanišić, Vušković, Gvardiol, Perišić - Modrić, Kovačić - Baturin, P. Sučić, Ivanović - Musić. Billić placed Musić as the central striker, while Baturin and Ivanović were to play on the wings. He stated that he wanted to test the team without compromising the result. England plays with: Pickford - Quansah, Kons, Guehi, Hall - Anderson, Scott - Saka, Bellingham, Gordon - Kane, with Thomas Tuchel as coach.
The English team established control over the match from the start, with Croatia defending. In the 3rd minute, Bellingham found Gordon who ran in and shot from an angle, but Livaković saved. In the 6th minute, a free kick by England was cleared by Perišić. However, in the 8th minute, Gvardiol passed the ball incorrectly in the middle, the English took possession, Bellingham assisted, and the captain of England, Kane, scored past Livaković from ten meters, making it 0-1. Livaković then saved Croatia from a second goal, as Gordon once again came out alone in front of him, but the goalkeeper of Barcelona made the save.
Kane thus scored in five consecutive away games for England, the last of which was against the Czech Republic in a 0-2 win. Josip Stanišić stated that he told Kane: 'But again, you?!' The greatest ovation at the Rujevic stadium went to Luka Modrić.
The Croatian Football Federation (HNS) decided to serve the UEFA penalty by playing the home match without fans at the Rujevic stadium, the home of HNK Rijeka, which holds 8,279 spectators. UEFA allowed 5,000 young fans, children under 14 from youth academies, to attend with their guardians. According to the rules of the European football organization, free entry is allowed for children up to 14 years old from schools and football academies, accompanied by an adult. An expected 5,000 to 6,000 children from across Croatia will attend, with representatives of local football schools also present. For the match, Marin Pongrač, Lovro Majer, Ante Budimir, and Dion Drena Belj were excluded, while the referee was Sven Jablonski from Germany.
