Our prediction for this Nations League match:
Croatia
Match Time & Date:
08/09/2024
20:45
Prediction: 1-1
Poland
Croatia will be aiming to make amends for a 2-1 loss to Portugal when they take on Poland in the Nations League round 2. The Croats have yet to recover from the heartbreaking elimination in the EURO 2024 group stages, but Sunday’s clash could be the turning point for Luka Modric and Co. Olympique Lyon defender Duje Caleta-Car is pushing for a start, while there are no fresh injury worries in the home team.
The Poles, on the other hand, defeated Scotland 3-2 in their Nations League opener, with Nicola Zalewski scoring a later winner in Glasgow. As always, a man to watch in the away team will be Barca attacker Robert Lewandowski, who opened his goal-scoring account against Scotland. Given Poland’s attacking potential, we believe that there is a big value in betting on both teams to score. Bear in mind, though, that under 2.5 goals have been netted in each of the previous three meetings between the two sides.
Highlighted Player (Luka Modric):
Luka Modric is regarded as one of the best central midfielders in world football. The Croatian ace is a product of Dinamo Zagreb’s youth school and it has to be noted that he played 94 league games for the Modri between 2003 and 2008. In 2008 he signed a six-year deal with Tottenham Hotspur for a fee of £16.5 million.
Luka made his Tottenham debut on 16 August, 2008 in a 2-1 loss to Middlesbrough at Riverside Stadium. The Croatian star scored only 13 goals in 127 league appearances for the Spurs, but he is well known for his brilliant passing. In 2012 he signed for Real Madrid for a fee of £30 million and he made his debut against Barcelona in the 2012 Spanish Super Cup, return leg.
Modric quickly established himself as a first-team regular and, no doubt, he helped the capital club win two Champions League trophies (2013/2014, 2015/2016). You should bear in mind that he was named Croatian Footballer of the Year in 2007, 2008, 2011 and 2014.
Highlighted Team (Poland):
Poland have recently emerged as one of Europe’s top sides, although they did enjoy some success during the 70’s and 80’s. The White Eagles impressed to achieve third-place finish at the 1974 and 1982 World Cup tournaments, while they also win the 1972 Olympics, albeit with an amateur side.
Poland started showing improvement at the turn of the century, slowly becoming regular at major tournaments and they even co-hosted the Euro 2012 with Ukraine, but disappointed home fans to crash out in the group stage. The new generation, boasting players like Robert Lewandowski, Arkadiusz Milik, Lukas Piszczek, Grzegorz Krychowiak and Jakub Blaszczykowski, has the potential to help the national team return to old glory days, with some talented players also coming through the youth ranks.
Zbigniew Boniek, Wlodzimierz Lubanski and Grzegorz Lato are some of the other players who have impressed playing for the national team, which has been playing their home games at the National Stadium in Warsaw.
Sparta Prague 
Atletico Madrid 
Barcelona 
Brest
Bayer Leverkusen 
Salzburg 
Bayern Munich 
PSG
Inter 
Leipzig 
Man City 
Feyenoord 
