September 26 2026 — Two minutes into the second half, Luka Modrić collected the ball on the right, took a touch that bought him space, and drove an angled shot into the far corner. At 41, the Croatia captain had just given Slaven Bilić a lead in his first match back in charge. By full time on Saturday at Fortuna Arena, that lead had become a 2–1 UEFA Nations League win.

The match had been tight until then. Croatia held more of the ball in a goalless first half but created little. The breakthrough came from a turnover: Igor Matanović cut out a loose Czech pass and found Modrić, who finished with the calm of a player who has spent two decades making the difficult look ordinary. It was his 30th goal in a 203-cap international career.

Czechia, beginning life under new coach Santi Denia, replied within seven minutes. Adam Hložek broke down the right and squared for Adam Karabec, who finished low to level the score at 1–1 in the 54th minute. For a spell, the hosts looked capable of ending the night on their own terms.

Bilić’s side absorbed the blow and went again. In the 77th minute Ivan Perišić delivered from the flank and substitute Marco Pašalić headed downward. Lukáš Horníček could not keep the ball out. Two minutes later the stadium thought Czechia had equalised again, but VAR ruled out Matej Radosta’s finish for offside.

The result ended a 19-match unbeaten home run for Czechia and handed Croatia three points in League A Group A3. Spain also opened with a win, 3–2 against England, so the two favourites sit level before they meet in Seville.

Modrić, born on 9 September 1985 and now at AC Milan after his long spell at Real Madrid, was withdrawn once the points were safe. The goal was not nostalgia. It was control: a veteran still dictating tempo on a night when Croatia needed a leader more than a symbol.

Bilić will take the win and the warning. England and Spain remain in the group. A veteran’s strike bought Croatia a start. The rest of the campaign will ask whether the supporting cast can keep pace.

Source:https://x.com/OtiAdjei/status/2103952849503719865