How did he miss that? Kovacic's horrible fail against England. VIDEO
Mateo Kovacic will not want to watch this one back.
Details: Croatia midfielder Mateo Kovacic produced one of the most unbelievable misses of the international break during the first half of the UEFA Nations League clash with England in Rijeka. In the 41st minute, the hosts were gifted possession near the England penalty area, and Kovacic suddenly found himself with a golden opportunity to pull a goal back.
Elliot Anderson lost the ball on the edge of his own box, allowing Kovacic to burst in from the left. The Croatian midfielder kept his composure long enough to round Jordan Pickford and appeared to have done the hardest part, leaving himself with an almost empty goal. However, his final touch completely let him down: Kovacic sliced the shot wide of the right post.
The miss looked even more painful because Croatia were already 0-3 down at the time. Harry Kane had opened the scoring in the eighth minute, Jude Bellingham doubled England's advantage in the 21st, and Anthony Gordon added the third in the 38th. Instead of giving Croatia a lifeline, Kovacic's chance disappeared, and Bukayo Saka punished the hosts again in the 45th minute to make it 0-4 before the interval.
It is worth noting that Croatia and England had already met at the 2026 World Cup this summer. That group-stage encounter also produced plenty of goals, with England winning 4-2.
Reminder: Fabian Ruiz leaves Spain squad ahead of match against Czechia. What is the reason?
Steven Perez
Dailysports's expert
