Turbulent World Cup debut: Vuskovic sets a record, but learns fast! | OneFootball

Luka Vuskovic is one of three players from Hamburg’s squad taking part in the World Cup. In the opener, he faced England with Croatia.

Just as at HSV, the center-back, with his right knee strapped, served as a key figure in the back three despite his young age. He had already set a record at kickoff. At 19 years and 114 days, Vuskovic became the youngest Croatian World Cup player in history, overtaking Matteo Kovacic, who was later brought on as a substitute. In the match itself, however, there were both highs and lows.

In only his sixth international appearance, Vuskovic had a number of successful moments, including five clearances in dangerous areas and six ball recoveries. One of those came before Martin Baturina’s equalizer for 1-1, when he left his usual position and won the ball in a duel with Jude Bellingham (36'). But just six minutes later, England went back in front. Harry Kane, who had already converted a penalty at the second attempt for the early lead, headed in Declan Rice’s cross to make it 2-1. Vuskovic, who had first cleared for a corner and was then slightly blocked by John Stones, did leap high but could no longer reach the ball.

Photo: IMAGO

Vuskovic with a few shaky moments

Shortly before the break, Croatia equalized again through Petar Musa after a wonderful move, but they completely slept through the start of the second half. That led immediately to the 3-2, scored by Jude Bellingham after making a run down the flank. Vuskovic—whose lack of top speed is probably his only, though very obvious, weakness—also played a part, as he chose not to engage in the foot race and instead decided to track the run of Noni Madueke cutting inside.

One of his core strengths, by contrast, is his aerial game. Last season, he won an impressive 153 aerial duels, which ranked fifth in the Bundesliga. But England’s highly dangerous corners repeatedly put Hamburg’s breakout star under pressure. That was the case again in the 56th minute: Nico O’Reilley got away from him and was denied by the excellent Dominik Livakovic, who kept Croatia in the game for a long time.

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It was substitute Marcus Rashford who finally settled the match, making it 4-2 five minutes before the end of regular time after a well-worked counterattack. By then, Vuskovic was no longer on the pitch. He had made way for Marco Pasalic after 66 minutes. Coach Zlatko Dalic had switched to a back four with his team trailing.

Despite the defeat, the 2018 runners-up and 2022 third-place finishers still have a realistic chance of reaching the knockout stage. With Panama and Ghana to come, the remaining group games look manageable. Vuskovic, who paid a bit of a learning fee against a strong opponent in the opener, could then get another chance to prove himself on world football’s biggest stage.

Photo: IMAGO

This article was translated into English by Artificial Intelligence. You can read the original version in 🇩🇪 here.