Josko Gvardiol admits jokes will ramp up at Manchester City as FIFA World Cup nears | OneFootball

With Croatia set to face England at the 2026 FIFA World Cup, Josko Gvardiol expects the jokes to ramp up with his Manchester City teammates as the season progresses.

The 23-year-old has played 46 times for his country and will likely be present in Canada, Mexico and the United States next year when Croatia compete on the biggest stage in international football.  

The Group L clash between Croatia and England could see Gvardiol and Mateo Kovacic – should he be fit and be included in the squad – come up against a host of their Manchester City teammates, including John Stones, Phil Foden and Nico O’Reilly. 

Recent history between the two nations catches the eye of many supporters and last time out, England edged past Croatia at the 2021 UEFA European Championship, with former Manchester City forward Raheem Sterling scoring the only goal of the game.

Ahead of their 2026 meeting, Gvardiol has said he expects the mind games to ramp up despite no one starting the friendly jesting just yet, as another exciting battle awaits indefinitely.

“Not yet, maybe a month before it starts,” Gvardiol said in an interview with ESPN. “I’m happy that I’m going to see them. Hopefully all of them will be in the team.

“I spoke to Kalvin (Phillips). I remember my first Euros, his first Euros, we played against each other in the first game. Kalvin was there, John, Phil, Kyle (Walker). I was playing as a full-back so I was on Kyle’s side.”

Croatia beat Gareth Southgate’s England in the semi-finals of the 2018 FIFA World Cup in Russia before the Three Lions got a measure of revenge by flipping the successes in the aforementioned European Championship tie.

Gvardiol added: “It’s a big thing to be at the World Cup. When it all starts, all we try to do is go game-by-game and try to win as many points as possible and qualify for the next round.

“We need to stay on the ground. We’re a small nation and we go game by game. That’s it. Even with the results in Russia and Qatar, we weren’t expecting it. With a bit of luck and the energy we put into the games, anything is possible.”

Though Croatia have a population of less than four million, their success over recent major international tournaments has seen them climb the world ranking impressively, reaching the semi-finals of the last two World Cups. 

They were beaten by France in the 2018 final and lost in the semi-finals to eventual winners Argentina four years later on that glorious day in Qatar for Lionel Messi and co.