In the group stage of the European Championship, Croatia was dramatically held to a draw by Italy in the final round, finishing with only 2 points from three games, making their path to the knockout stage extremely difficult. Luka Modrić’s team seems unable to replicate their World Cup glory in the Euros.
As Mbappé said, “The challenge of the European Championship is more difficult,” a view confirmed by Croatia’s struggles. Despite achieving runner-up and third-place finishes in the last two World Cups, shining on the world stage, Croatia’s track record in the European Championship is much dimmer. Their best-ever finish is only reaching the quarterfinals, never making it to the semifinals.
In the 2020 European Championship, Croatia were eliminated in the Round of 16, and this time, the possibility of being eliminated in the group stage is looming. In contrast, on the World Cup stage, they have reached the semi-finals three times, achieving two third-place finishes (1998 and 2022) and a runner-up finish (2018), achieving impressive results.
Previously, facing Mbappé’s comments about the difficulty of the European Championship, Modrić expressed a different opinion: “I don’t want to compare. The European Championship brings together top-tier teams, and the World Cup is also not lacking in world-class competitors. Both have their own unique qualities, but I personally feel the challenge of the World Cup might be greater, as it brings together the broadest range of elite teams globally. Mbappé has his own views, and I stick to my stance.”
But for Modrić and the team, reality seems to confirm Mbappé’s statement. The European Championship has become an insurmountable hurdle, and unless a miracle happens, their European Championship journey might end prematurely.
With the golden generation players like Modrić, Kovačić, Brozović, Perišić, and Kramaric gradually entering the twilight of their careers, coupled with the retirement of players like Rakitić and Mandžukić from the national team, for Croatia to make a breakthrough in the European Championship, they will need the growth of the new generation and the passage of time. Whether they can achieve “redemption” on the European Championship stage in the future, only time will tell.
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