Our prediction for this World Cup 2026 match:
Croatia
Match Time & Date:
09/06/2025
20:45
Prediction: 1-1
Czech Republic
After rolling over Gibraltar 7-0 in their opener, Croatia will look to give fans yet another reason to celebrate when they take on Czech Republic in their second group game. Real Madrid ace Luka Modric is pushing for a start after coming as a substitute against Gibraltar, with attacking duo Andrej Kramaric – Franjo Ivanovic eyeing a spot in the starting XI after each netting a brace in Friday’s clash.
The Czechs, on the other hand, look unstoppable at the moment, with the team eyeing their fifth consecutive win in all competitions. As Czech Republic proved their worth in a 2-0 win over Montenegro, we predict that they will hold Croatia to a draw at Opus Arena in Osijek. Croatia and Czech Republic played out a 1-1 draw at the EURO 2021 and we predict that history is going to repeat on Monday evening. With Adam Hlozek limping off with injury in the last qualifying match, Lukas Provod is widely expected to sneak into the starting XI.
Highlighted Player (Mateo Kovacic):
Born to Croatian parents in Linz, Austria, Mateo Kovacic spent seven years in the LASK Linz youth academy before joining Dinamo Zagreb, where he showed a great deal of potential shortly after being promoted to the senior squad.
The good return of 7 goals in 43 league appearances saw him secure a high-profile move to Inter Milan, where he acted as both holding midfielder and attacking midfielder, during the three years at Stadio Giuseppe Meazza. And despite not exactly impressing in Italy, Kovacic was purchased by mighty Real Madrid, where he has been ever since. The youngster is widely regarded as one of Croatia’s most talented footballers at the moment and he has represented the country on international stage since the age of 19.
In just three years he managed to make over 25 appearances for the national team, playing at the 2014 World Cup and Euro 2016 finals for Vatreni. Kovavic has yet to be given a real chance to impress at Real Madrid, but he has entire future ahead of him.
Highlighted Team (Czech Republic):
Czech Republic national team is the natural successor of the Czechoslovakia side that dominated world football during the 20th century, winning one European Championship trophy and coming second at 1934 and 1962 World Cups. After the separation of the country in 1992, Czech Republic continued the proud tradition by qualifying for each of the next six European Championship finals, losing to Germany in the final of the 1996 tournament.
The Czechs also reached the last eight at the 2012 finals, but their World Cup record of late is pretty disappointing. Since separating from Slovakia, Czech Republic only qualified for one of five World Cup finals. The 1996 generation, featuring players like Pavel Nedved, Karel Poborsky and Patrik Berger, will forever remained etched in the fans’ memory, while the likes of Milan Baros, Jan Koller, Petr Cech and Tomas Rosicky are some of the other notable footballers.
Highly rated goalkeeper Petr Cech is the team’s most capped player, whereas towering forward Jan Koller tops the goalscoring charts with 55 strikes in 91 games.
Palmeiras
Botafogo RJ
Benfica
Chelsea
Mexico
Saudi Arabia
PSG
Inter Miami
Flamengo RJ
Bayern Munich
USA
Costa Rica
