Mateo Kovačić is finally getting his groove back as he received the start for Chelsea on Saturday from manager Frank Lampard. With Chelsea does 1-0 in the 23rd minute, Kovačić assisted on the opening goal and was given 8/10 as he “Provided the killer cut-back to Abraham for Chelsea’s first strike of the evening. Drove the Blues forward in the second half. Almost got an assist with a delicious back-heel.” Chelsea went on to win the match 4-1 which puts them three points behind leaders Leicester City. Great to see Kovačić gain some momentum and confidence heading in the international break this week.
Kovačić assist to Abraham
Pjaca Goal vs. Roma
We have a Marko Pjaca siting! The Genoa winger got the start on Sunday and scored the equalizer for his side in the 50th minute as he slotted home following a perfect pass to put Pjaca on the break away. Roma would score twice after that to win 3-1 but it’s good to see Pjaca on the board. He needs a solid season in Serie A if the Vatreni look to call him up in 2021.
What the hell is going on at Real Madrid? The reigning La Liga champions lost 4-1 to Valencia on Sunday and now sit four points off the Spanish lead. Real have been using Luka Modrić sparingly to begin the season, however, he got the start and played the full 90 minutes in the match. He received a 5.5 grade as Modrić was ” One of the most active players of the night. No way of telling how old this man is. Looked eager to keep the team moving and had a few chances himself. Played the entire match.”
Što bi Croatiansports.com da nije @Bećara?
Any sort of login that gets rid of Truth Troll and haet would be fantastic!
Pjaca’s goal celebration is pretty cool if you ask me.
What’s going on with Mandzukic? He has fresh legs for the repka I think.
Dalic and his staff have to spend some time thinking about defence more. Too much ball watching. Sometimes in sports overthinking things is bad for results. Zone defence? Hybrid zone and man/man? WWZD (What Would Zlatan Do)?
@ Bojan,
Not true. It takes me 3 seconds to kill an account attached to an email. How long does it take to create an email. You will know if you’re not welcome here. It’s just too much work.
I think the tribe has spoken. Simple email login. Stay logged in. This is the Digital Dom. Where Croatians all across the world can talk sport and such. Don’t think that’s a bad deal. -Ante
@Bojan
True, but then they would have to create a new email account every time their current one is blocked.
It’s a matter of figuring out how resilient the trolls are in creating a new email account every time they’re blocked… versus how willing a valuable poster is in creating an email account just to comment.
I realize that Pjaca normally played as a winger which we have plenty of depth. It’s painfully obvious that we don’t have a proven CF after Kramaric. Based on Dalic’s last interview, he stated that it’s the last chance to try some players ie Budimir and Colak. That said, Rebic has played CF previously and Perisic has proven that he can play there too. Maybe Dalic is already feels like he knows Pjaca and wants him to focus on regaining his form. I just really wish he called him up instead of Colak. I think Pjaca can over dribble and be a bit slow in passing/completing passes but he’s got skills and the athletic ability to back it.
His last goal was a nice touch to control, second to position himself and a cool side foot finish while under pressure. In my opinion, I think only Perisic and Kramaric finish that opportunity 9 out 10 times.
Goal at 1:30
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3Xgvn_DSqik&feature=emb_title&ab_channel=SerieA
I agree that email is silly. You’re trying to prevent Anonymous trolling with his whit power stuff but the guy will just make A fake email and do it anyway. Ultimately you won’t stop any of the trolling or spam but instead youll just kill the real convos. Email log in will cause spam and trolls to make up a greater percent of comments, not less
@ Marko,
Oh man. You just made me chuckle. Some comments that people have directed towards me make my Hall of Fame. And that’s one of them.
I run this website ad-free and you’re worried I’m going to sell – what – 55 email addresses for some cash??? What would I make? 12 cents. Keep the change. I’m good.
@ All,
All comments should be going through automatically now. There was some delay. Should be fixed. We need a minimum of email logging in in the future to deter spam and haters. The email would keep you logged in and you can create a fake one. That shouldn’t be a big deal.
Your browser is what sends you ads (not Ante selling your information).
Just you going on this website could trigger you getting ads from Google. Nothing to do with your email address.
Besides, you can always create a fake email account just for commenting on websites.
The email login makes it easier to block commenters who just come on here to instigate things.
Email login Is terrible. this so you can sell our info to third parties? We comment about luka modric and suddenly we’re getting ads to buy Real Madrid jersies?! I’ll pass on letting big brother track me
I would love to see Pjaca become interesting again. He had so much attacking drive before that injury. He has similar size and technical skills as Petković (good dribbling and finishing) but with better passing and better work ethic. Even if he isn’t the same player as before, he could contribute in a different way.
Maybe I’m not explaining myself correctly. When I support “logging in”, I envision a process where I need to create an account with a username. Once created and logged in, I stay logged in.
As for people who are worried about their posts haunting them in the future, well, those are exactly the posts I’d like to never see here anyway.
Just my 2 cents……
oh ok, I see my comments were just delayed
Can we make an option for MySpace login?
Ante – Jokes aside, with the site/company you’re working with, do they offer some type of Twitter integration? I know I interact with the CSR twitter handle and all, seems like others do too.
Thanks for all your work. Hope you can make CSR great again 😉
Ante,
Since majority of the people here are against mandatory login, can you add some admin’s to help filter out the trash? I know you do your best but there is always a post or two that gets through that shouldn’t. If more people helped out, you could silence the trolls and remove the garbage to the point where those people give up and stop coming to the site.
Civil discourse is and should always be welcome but posts that are heavily racist (as an example) make this site look bad. I’d like to think that we as Hrvati are better than that.
I also agree that an email log in is stupid. I won’t post with one
cant seem to post anything here
Well, hopefully Kovacic had a moment of reflection after being put on the bench by Lampard.
Kovacic has been too privileged as a footballer since he was this young prodigy brought in from Linz, then sold at 19 to Inter (who also started him every game and treated him like their prodigy). Then ended up going to Real, mainly on future hype and not based on anything he actually achieved or did in Milan. He felt he deserved to start at Real, so he accepted the move to London.
He also plays with the same privileged attitude for the National Team where he doesn’t push forward, and prefers to play his way. You can tell that Dalic wants him to press forward and play our Croatian way, but the guys just continues to play his game.
But now he’s in a situation where both his National Team AND his club coach are benching him. His 50 million Chelsea price tag doesn’t matter any more and Lampard has no problem benching him and moving forward with Havertz taking up one of the midfield roles. Vlasic is doing the same at the National Team.
His Chelsea player-of-year award and Croatia’s ‘Modric successor’ titles are meaningless. Kovacic is quickly going to become an afterthought and nobody is going to give him an automatic spot on the first team (club or country) just because he is some skilled prodigy. He has to deliver (which is something he’s never done yet in his career).
Hopefully he wakes up now.
Keep up the great work on this website! We are all grateful for your efforts to bring Croatian sports fans together. I also vote for an email login.
I try to watch most Chelsea games, just to see Kovacic. He has always played well, but as many of you have pointed out, he always seem to play the ball back, or sideways, and never really poses a threat in the final 3rd. This past game we saw a completely different Kova…actually attacking and linking up well offensively. I hope we see much more of this!
espnfc
MF Luka Modric, 7 — Probably Madrid’s best player. Has an unmatched ability to receive the ball in midfield, escape challenges and find space. One gorgeous pass to play in Marco Asensio in the second half.
email log in would be a grave error in terms of comments and traffic. it would be essentially the deaht of the dialogue of this site minus maybe like 5 to 10 people.
as many have mentioned, the process of logging in is too much of a hassle. in addition, with today’s culture of having anything you’ve ever written on the internet in the history of time, examined and brought back to haunt you, many people would just find that an unacceptable risk
i myself have too high a profile to provide any personal info for myself and put myself in that risky position.
i for one would be out, and consquently the board would simply have a lot more homerism and a lot less truth
Pjaca was a rising star before injury.
Maybe he can become an asset again.
Hopefully he can prove he’s not damaged goods.
“Kovacic is an important player to this team both on and off the pitch. When fully healthy, he’s a true asset, especially when he plays with the confidence and class he did against Sheffield.”
Kovačić is a keeper.
No one brings his speed and dribbling into the middle of the park.
He also has the ability to be decisive in the final third.
At a certain point maybe he is just going to choose to be excellent and ignore the BS all around him.
I pray he is healthy.
Boys,
Thanks for all the input and kind words. I am already in the process of building a new site. CroatianSports.com launched in 2010 and the developer I’m talking to say website should only last 4-5 years. Croatian grit, eh?
It will be email login for comments. Thanks for your patience. I know this website looks nothing like the last but at least you guys can comment and talk to each other. Big week!
Yep that’s the one Maminjo
Well described
Probably explains his mindset or mentality at where he actually is at with his stage of career
Just as bad as kovas celebrations when he actually scored
Very childish
Yep that’s the one Maminjo
Well described
Probably explains his mindset or mentality
Just as stupid as Kovas celebrations when he actually does score
Yep Maminjo that’s one
Well described
He look like a dill when he does it
Probably explains his mindset or mentality
Varane is a shit show.
@Suba
How does he celebrate?
Is he doing the Moose rogove thing still?
So stupid. Then again, all Serie A celebrations are stupid (except for the Epic Brozo chin grab).
Luka Modric – 5.5: One of the most active players of the night. No way of telling how old this man is. Looked eager to keep the team moving and had a few chances himself. Played the entire match.
At 35 he is the best rated outfield player?
Wtf is happening at Real?
They need more Croatians.
Vlašić would thrive their.
Nice goal by Pjaca
Although I wish he stops with that stupid celebration style because with another serious injury the joke would be on him
Pjaca injury free is ahead of Halilovic coric or Balic based on where he is at and being more explosive and physical
A good back up to Rebic I think
This is not good if true.
Players from six Serie A clubs, including Roma and Inter Milan, have reportedly been banned from leaving their local areas and joining up with their national teams for the time being by their local health authorities due to the coronavirus pandemic.
Other local health authorities in Italy have also prevented players from travelling, according to Football Italia, meaning Italian internationals Ciro Immobile, Domenico Criscito and Nicolo Barella will not be able to represent their country, while overseas stars like Edin Dzeko, Alexis Sanchez, Romelu Lukaku, Ivan Perisic and Arturo Vidal are also set to be deprived of the opportunity to play in next week’s games.
That was me above.
I demand credit for the obscure Vučko reference.
Halilović, Balić, Ćorić, or Pjaca.
Which one is likeliest to get a future cap for the National Team?
And which one wins the Jurica Vučko award for biggest bust?
Great work with this quick and dirty solution for the site. It looks very clean. Nicer than the original, imo.
Kovačić is a good player.
Maybe this Chelsea challenge is what he needs to become great?
Mateo Kovačić
For perhaps the first time in his Chelsea career, Kovačić offered off-the-ball runs in the final third to stretch the defence. While some of his passes and ideas did not come off, the sheer volume of his attacking runs meant he ended up with the assist for the opener. More of this please.
Stats of note
1 assist
2 tackles won (3 attempted) – Joint 2nd
5 shot-creating actions – Joint 2nd
5 touches in the penalty box – Joint 3rd
RATING: 7.5
Budimir getting the blame for the goal dry spell at osasuna
Is that a fair call
Maybe his late career spell is over before it had begun
Tough life being a professional footballer
I dont think do a mandatory log-in, it will drive away too many. And as you said Ante the main thing is having comments open like this so good job getting that back : ) How pretty it is, well, there’s no massive rush about getting that fixed.
I would LOVE for Pjaca to make a come back.
That away to Estonia was treachery.
He deserves our support.
Plus he could be yet another mid 20’s super star nogometaš.
Marko Pjaca with the nice clinical finish against Roma today but more importantly 94% passes completed and 100% dribbling attempts. Pjaca > Colak
Someone asked about Kova’s injury; it didn’t look too bad and he went to sit on the bench instead of going to the locker-room for treatment so hopefully he’s okay.
I’d prefer not to use facebook.
In the redesign, I’d also like to have the ability to attach a short video. It would be great to be able to see a shared video (like in WhatsApp) without leaving the site via a link. I’m mostly imagining sharing highlights from games.
I’ve never had FB nor will I …It’s a means of portraying what a wonderful fictitious life everyone supposedly has ?
Everyone posting pics on vacation family dinners great times with kids and wifey.
Why doesn’t anyone post pics of their car getting repossessed…getting charged with a DUI or supposedly happy wifey pissed because you came home late with the boys and are too drunk to get it up for her ?
Perception and deception is where social media really thrives .
Keep up the great work Ante.
I don’t use Facebook, or any social media for that matter. I’m not about to start just so that I can post here. If that’s what’s chosen, I’m out. I hope that doesn’t come out as some sort of threat, it’s not. It’s just my reality.
Though, would a Facebook log in mean that any comments made are seen by everyone on your Facebook, or just on Croatiansports?
Facebook login is the most efficient way to minimize trolls and jackasses that just try to be inflammatory while hiding behind internet anonymity.
Yes, you will lose some potential posters, but oh well… totally worth it
Actually for years for some reason the site is not recognized from my home WiFi?
Hopefully the new site will?
Either way I’ll be ready to keep posting about these type of positive performances:
Mateo Kovacic (Central midfielder): 8
It felt nice to see someone as skilled as Mateo Kovacic with such confidence and composure on the ball in this match. Kovacic may not have been at his best—until now—but he made his presence known. His control of the ball, and therefore, his control of the game was impeccable. Kovacic earned an assist and was extremely efficient across areas of the pitch. Hopefully his injury isn’t long lasting as he is needed in order for this Chelsea squad to function
Fuck Facebook
Email log in please.
Never used Facebook.
Email log in please.
Never used Facebook.
Good luck creating the new website! Can’t wait to use it
No to Facebook. Lots of people don’t use it.
Email login is great for filtering out the trolls, but it might filter out some of the legitimate posters who aren’t regular commenters.
Tough call.
Facebook login
How about you start to learn to spell properly first before you begin to make any ridiculous political statement
Been a follower of the site and what Ante has done in uniting Croatian people around the world is amazing- we are blessed to have such a Croatian warrior bringing us news and entertainment- thank you Ante za sve
Today is a day to celebrate. Trump has been removed from office and we can begin remedying the injustice, iniquity, racism, global malice that he has spawned
Mateo Kovacic 8
His willingness to break the lines and burst into the box caused Sheffield United problems. His charge forward is what led to Abraham’s equaliser in the first half.
@ Ante
The site will come back stronger, just like Mateo Kovačić!!
Why comment as a Hajduk fan openly any more on this website
You would be criticised being called a non Croat and even worse a Partizan
Hajduk fans? Are you guys still alive?
Ante
Don’t do it otherwise the message board would dominated by one minded morons like Slavonac and Co who would use every opportunity to criticise others including yourself
It’s called free speech and would particularly bad especially when Biden has won the election
Don’t do it
Website. I don’t use Fakebook.
Mandatory website login or Facebook login?
I was the last anonymous, for the record.
I’d prefer there being a requirement to login. I think that it would cut out a lot of the stupid trolling. I’ve been a long time reader but only recently took the plunge to start posting.
I’d like to have the ability to attach pictures.
Hey guys,
Thank you for the kind words. Iggy, this is 100% not a redesign. This is a nasty backup I put together on Friday so we can at least chat and comment.
The custom CroatianSports.com theme (what the website looks like) is now broken and I may not be able to bring it back. You know what that mean? NEW WEBSITE!
I imagine I will have a new website up and running for all of you by February. Input is welcomed.
I think they only consensus is not having a requirement to login to comment. I think that would turn everybody off. I’ve been better at blocking the shit at the door, and trust me, there’s been tons of shit.
If there’s functions on other sports websites you like, please send them my way. -Ante
Hvala Ante
Keep up the stellar work brate
@Andrej L
I thought the same as you. An uncharacteristic charge into the offensive zone for Kovacic resulted in a goal. I didn’t see the game, but he received some good ratings. It seems he was subbed out due to injury. Was it anything that looked serious?
As for Rog, I watched most of the first half. He definitely looked lively. He was playing on the outside and was definitely driving forward more often. He’s a nice little backup to have for us.
Interesting design update ; )
Kova just made a nice run and quick cut back for an assist. Let’s hope he can keep excelling in the attacking third. He should get minutes against Turkey at least.
Watched Rog this morning too. Nice touches here and there and looked lively but still coughed up the ball needlessly at times.
Maybe we see a Kova, Rog, and Pasalic midfield against Turkey.
Thank you Ante!
Thanks for you hard work and dedication Ante.
Hey guys, Obviously the site looks like shit. I’m working on both a short-term fix to bring back the site you know as well as a long-term brand new website. This will at least let you guys talk and comment. -Ante
Test Test