Croatia national under-21 football team

Croatia U21
Nickname(s)Mladi Vatreni (The Young Blazers)
AssociationCroatian Football Federation (HNS)
ConfederationUEFA (Europe)
Head coachIvica Olić
CaptainBartol Franjić
Most capsLuka Ivanušec (28)
Top scorerTomislav Bušić (13)
FIFA codeCRO
First colours
Second colours
First international
  6–1 Hungary 
(Zagreb, Croatia, 14 October 1992)
Biggest win
  10–0 San Marino 
(Zagreb, Croatia, 8 October 2020)
Biggest defeat
 Spain 6–0  
(Alicante, Spain, 10 September 2012)
UEFA U-21 Championship
Appearances5 (first in 2000)
Best resultQuarter-finals (2021)
Websitehns-cff.hr

The Croatia national under-21 football team represents Croatia in international football matches for players 21 or under. It is governed by the Croatian Football Federation, the governing body for football in Croatia. It is a member of UEFA in Europe and FIFA in global competitions. The team's colours reference two national symbols: the Croatian checkerboard and the country's tricolour. They are colloquially referred to as the Mladi vatreni ('Young Blazers'). So far, the Mladi vatreni qualified for five UEFA European Under-21 Championships, namely in 2000, 2004, 2019, 2021 and 2023. Croatia was unable to pass the group stage until the 2021 Euro when it was eliminated in the quarter-finals, its greatest accomplishment in the European competition so far.

Results and fixtures

Main article: Croatia national under-21 football team results (2020–present)

The following is a list of match results in the last 12 months, as well as any future matches that have been scheduled.

  Win   Draw   Loss   Fixture

2024

5 September 2024 (2024-09-05) Euro 2025 qualif Gr G   2–1  Faroe Islands
10 September 2024 (2024-09-10) Euro 2025 qualif Gr G   0–2  Portugal
11 October 2024 (2024-10-11) Euro 2025 qualif Gr G   2–0  Andorra
15 October 2024 (2024-10-15) Euro 2025 qualif Gr G   3–2  Greece

Coaching staff

Current coaching staff

Position Name[1]
Head coach Croatia Ivica Olić
Assistant coaches Croatia Ante Tomić
Croatia Renato Pilipović
Croatia Niko Kranjčar
Goalkeeping coach Croatia Darko Staneković
Fitness coaches Croatia Vedran Naglić
Croatia Aris Naglić
Analyst Croatia Nikola Buzadžić
Doctors Croatia Mislav Rakić
Croatia Boban Dangubić
Croatia Nino Brajković
Physiotherapists Croatia Tomislav Buljan
Technical secretary Croatia Josip Tomaško
Kit men Croatia Milan Vincek
Croatia Luka Karlo

Players

Current squad

The following players were called up for the friendly tournament against Qatar, Republic of Ireland and Sweden on 3, 6 and 10 June 2025; respectively.[2]

Caps and goals correct as of 10 June 2025, after the match against Sweden

No. Pos. Player Date of birth (age) Caps Goals Club
1 1GK Ante Vuković (2004-08-10) 10 August 2004 1 0 Italy Vis Pesaro
12 1GK Anthony Pavlešić (2006-01-31) 31 January 2006 2 0 Germany Bayern Munich
23 1GK Tin Sajko (2004-03-07) 7 March 2004 2 0 Croatia Rudeš
1GK Toni Silić (2004-05-07) 7 May 2004 1 0 Croatia Hajduk Split
2 2DF Filip Krušelj (2005-03-30) 30 March 2005 2 0 Croatia Slaven Belupo
3 2DF Antonio Tikvić (2004-04-21) 21 April 2004 8 0 Austria Grazer
4 2DF Viktor Damjanić (2005-11-03) 3 November 2005 2 0 Serbia Jedinstvo Ub
5 2DF Šimun Hrgović (2004-03-20) 20 March 2004 10 0 Croatia Hajduk Split
19 2DF Moreno Živković (2004-05-22) 22 May 2004 9 0 Croatia Lokomotiva Zagreb
21 2DF Matej Matić (2004-06-05) 5 June 2004 1 0 Ukraine Polissya Zhytomyr
22 2DF Filip Markanović (2005-01-13) 13 January 2005 1 0 Croatia Lokomotiva Zagreb
24 2DF Teo Barišić (2004-09-30) 30 September 2004 3 0 France Lyon
2DF Dominik Prpić (2004-05-19) 19 May 2004 6 0 Croatia Hajduk Split
2DF Matía Barzic (2004-05-31) 31 May 2004 4 0 Spain Eldense
2DF Marko Zebić (2007-01-08) 8 January 2007 0 0 Croatia Dinamo Zagreb
6 3MF Luka Vrbančić (2005-07-04) 4 July 2005 5 0 Croatia Lokomotiva Zagreb
13 3MF Ante Kavelj (2005-08-26) 26 August 2005 3 0 Croatia Šibenik
15 3MF Lovre Kulušić (2006-11-15) 15 November 2006 2 0 Croatia Šibenik
17 3MF Fabijan Krivak (2005-02-24) 24 February 2005 2 1 Croatia Lokomotiva Zagreb
18 3MF Luka Tunjić (2005-11-19) 19 November 2005 6 1 Netherlands Fortuna Sittard
3MF Adriano Jagušić (2005-09-06) 6 September 2005 4 0 Croatia Slaven Belupo
3MF Vito Čaić (2005-04-01) 1 April 2005 1 0 Croatia Gorica
8 4FW Bruno Durdov (2007-12-11) 11 December 2007 2 0 Croatia Hajduk Split
9 4FW Fran Topić (2004-03-20) 20 March 2004 5 2 Bosnia and Herzegovina Zrinjski Mostar
10 4FW Marin Šotiček (2004-09-18) 18 September 2004 14 2 Switzerland Basel
16 4FW Roko Brajković (2005-07-03) 3 July 2005 2 0 Croatia Hajduk Split
4FW Mate Antunović (2004-03-03) 3 March 2004 4 1 Croatia Varaždin
4FW Gabriel Rukavina (2004-01-16) 16 January 2004 4 0 Croatia Rijeka

Recent call-ups

The following players have also been called up to the squad in the last 12 months and are still eligible for selection.

Pos. Player Date of birth (age) Caps Goals Club Latest call-up
GK Nikola Čavlina (2002-06-02) 2 June 2002 11 0 Croatia Dinamo Zagreb v.  Georgia, 19 November 2024
GK Franko Kolić (2003-02-07) 7 February 2003 2 0 Slovenia Mura v.  Georgia, 19 November 2024
GK Ivan Mandić (2003-03-10) 10 March 2003 0 0 Portugal Casa Pia v.  Georgia, 19 November 2024
GK Borna Buljan (2005-04-05) 5 April 2005 0 0 Croatia Hajduk Split v.  Portugal, 10 September 2024
DF Moris Valinčić (2002-11-17) 17 November 2002 5 0 Croatia Dinamo Zagreb v.  Georgia, 19 November 2024
DF Ivan Cvijanović (2003-10-09) 9 October 2003 3 0 Croatia Osijek v.  Georgia, 19 November 2024
DF Luka Vušković (2007-02-24) 24 February 2007 4 1 Belgium Westerlo v.  Georgia, 19 November 2024
DF Juraj Badelj (2003-08-24) 24 August 2003 0 0 Romania Universitatea Craiova v.  Georgia, 19 November 2024
DF Novak Tepšić (2002-03-16) 16 March 2002 0 0 Croatia Varaždin v.  Georgia, 19 November 2024
DF Noa Mikić (2007-01-27) 27 January 2007 0 0 Croatia Dinamo Zagreb v.  Portugal, 10 September 2024
DF Maro Katinić (2004-04-13) 13 April 2004 6 0 United Arab Emirates Sharjah v.  Andorra, 11 October 2024PRE
DF Domagoj Bukvić (2004-02-22) 22 February 2004 9 1 Croatia Osijek v.  Georgia, 15 November 2024PRE
DF Luka Škaričić (2002-01-28) 28 January 2002 2 1 Croatia Varaždin v.  Georgia, 15 November 2024PRE
DF Luka Hodak (2006-06-10) 10 June 2006 0 0 Croatia Hajduk Split v.  Andorra, 11 October 2024PRE
MF Veldin Hodža (2002-10-15) 15 October 2002 20 3 Russia Rubin Kazan v.  Georgia, 19 November 2024
MF Lovro Zvonarek (2005-05-08) 8 May 2005 8 0 Austria Sturm Graz v.  Georgia, 19 November 2024
MF Marko Soldo (2003-11-22) 22 November 2003 7 0 Croatia Dinamo Zagreb v.  Georgia, 19 November 2024
MF Luka Stojković (2003-10-28) 28 October 2003 5 0 Croatia Dinamo Zagreb v.  Georgia, 19 November 2024
MF Leon Belcar (2002-01-04) 4 January 2002 5 0 Croatia Varaždin v.  Georgia, 19 November 2024
MF Marin Prekodravac (2005-03-03) 3 March 2005 0 0 Croatia Šibenik v.  Georgia, 15 November 2024PRE
MF Mateo Lisica (2003-07-09) 9 July 2003 3 0 Croatia Dinamo Zagreb v.  Georgia, 15 November 2024PRE
MF Šimun Mikolčić (2004-01-21) 21 January 2004 0 0 Croatia Osijek v.  Georgia, 15 November 2024PRE
MF Antonio Baždarić (2006-01-08) 8 January 2006 0 0 Croatia Lokomotiva v.  Andorra, 11 October 2024PRE
MF Luka Kapulica (2005-01-18) 18 January 2005 0 0 Croatia Gorica v.  Andorra, 11 October 2024PRE
MF Marko Capan (2004-02-24) 24 February 2004 0 0 Croatia Hajduk Split v.  Portugal, 10 September 2024
MF Branko Pavić (2006-11-07) 7 November 2006 1 0 Croatia Dinamo Zagreb v.  Greece, 15 October 2024
MF Lukas Kačavenda (2003-03-02) 2 March 2003 16 2 Austria LASK v.  Greece, 15 October 2024
FW Franjo Ivanović (2003-10-01) 1 October 2003 8 1 Belgium Union SG v.  Georgia, 19 November 2024
FW Gabriel Vidović (2003-12-01) 1 December 2003 18 2 Croatia Dinamo Zagreb v.  Georgia, 19 November 2024
FW Ante Crnac (2003-12-17) 17 December 2003 8 0 England Norwich City v.  Georgia, 19 November 2024
FW Dion Drena Beljo (2003-03-01) 1 March 2003 14 5 Croatia Dinamo Zagreb v.  Georgia, 19 November 2024
FW Matija Frigan (2003-02-11) 11 February 2003 11 2 Belgium Westerlo v.  Georgia, 19 November 2024
FW Stipe Biuk (2002-12-26) 26 December 2002 18 2 Spain Real Valladolid v.  Georgia, 19 November 2024
FW Marin Ljubičić (2002-02-28) 28 February 2002 17 8 Austria LASK v.  Georgia, 15 November 2024 INJ
FW Anton Matković (2006-02-19) 19 February 2006 2 0 Croatia Osijek v.  Andorra, 11 October 2024 INJ
  • INJ = Injured or ill.
  • WD = Withdrew.
  • SUS = Suspended from participating.
  • RET = Retired after latest call-up.
  • SEN = Joined the Croatia senior team instead.
  • PRE = Preliminary squad.

Competitive record

Summer Olympics

  Gold medalists    Silver medalists    Bronze medalists     Tournament hosted

Summer Olympics Qualification
Year Host Round Pld W D L F A Squad Pos. Pld W D L F A
1900 to 1904 Only club teams participated Only club teams participated
1908 to 1992 Part of Yugoslavia Part of Yugoslavia
1996 United States Did not qualify 4th 10 5 2 3 13 12
2000 Australia 4th 13 7 3 3 32 15
2004 Greece 4th 11 4 3 4 14 10
2008 China 3rd 2 0 0 2 2 4
2012 United Kingdom 1st 10 5 2 3 18 15
2016 Brazil 1st 10 6 1 3 22 9
2020 Japan 4th 13 8 2 3 35 13
2024 France 3rd 15 8 2 5 28 16
2028 United States To be determined To be determined
Total Never qualified 0 0 0 0 0 0 — 0/8 84 43 15 26 164 94

UEFA European Under-21 Championship

  Winners    Runners-up     Tournament hosted

UEFA European Under-21 Championship Qualification
Year Host Round Pld W D L F A Squad Pos. Pld W D L F A
1972 to 1992 Part of Yugoslavia Part of Yugoslavia
1994 France Not a UEFA member Not a UEFA member
1996 Spain Did not qualify 4th 10 5 2 3 13 12
1998 Romania 3rd 8 4 0 4 13 9
2000 Slovakia Group stage 3 0 1 2 4 6 Squad 1st 10 7 2 1 28 9
2002  Switzerland Did not qualify 2nd 8 3 4 1 10 7
2004 Germany Group stage 3 0 1 2 3 5 Squad 1st 8 4 2 2 11 5
2006 Portugal Did not qualify 1st 12 8 1 3 16 11
2007 Netherlands 1st 2 0 0 2 2 4
2009 Sweden 2nd 10 7 1 2 20 12
2011 Denmark 1st 10 5 2 3 19 14
2013 Israel 4th 8 2 1 5 7 16
2015 Czech Republic 1st 10 6 1 3 22 9
2017 Poland 3rd 10 6 2 2 24 11
2019 Italy Group stage 3 0 1 2 4 8 Squad 3rd 10 8 1 1 31 5
2021 Hungary
Slovenia		 Group stage 3 1 0 2 4 5 Squad 2nd 10 6 2 2 37 7
2023 Georgia
Romania		 Group stage 3 0 1 2 0 3 Squad 2nd 12 8 1 3 28 13
2025 Slovakia Did not qualify 2nd 12 8 1 3 23 17
2027 Albania
Serbia		 To be determined To be determined
Total Group stage 15 1 4 10 15 27 — 5/16 150 87 23 40 304 161

Statistics

Managers

The following table provides a summary of the complete record of each manager including their results regarding European Under-21 Championship.

Key: Pld–games played, W–games won, D–games drawn; L–games lost, %–win percentage
Bilić is one of two former U21 managers who later coached Croatia's senior team
Manager Tenure Pld W D L Win % Tournaments
Croatia Martin Novoselac 1994–1996
2000–2004 		54 19 20 15 035.2 1996 European Championship – Failed to qualify
2002 European Championship – Failed to qualify
2004 European Championship – Group stage
Croatia Ivo Šušak 1997–2000
2011–2013 		38 18 6 14 047.4 1998 European Championship – Failed to qualify
2000 European Championship – Group stage
2013 European Championship – Failed to qualify
Croatia Slaven Bilić 2004–2006 20 11 3 6 055.0 2006 European Championship – Play-offs
Croatia Aljoša Asanović (c) 2005 1 0 0 1 000.0 2006 European Championship – Failed to qualify[3]
Croatia Ivica Grnja (c) 2005 1 0 0 1 000.0 2006 European Championship – Failed to qualify[4]
Croatia Marijan Brnčić (c)[5] 2005 1 0 1 0 000.0 —
Croatia Dražen Ladić 2006–2011 32 20 6 6 062.50 2007 European Championship – Failed to qualify
2009 European Championship – Failed to qualify
2011 European Championship – Failed to qualify
Croatia Niko Kovač 2013 7 5 0 2 071.4 —
Croatia Nenad Gračan 2013–2019 41 21 9 11 051.2 2015 European Championship – Failed to qualify
2017 European Championship – Failed to qualify
2019 European Championship – Group stage
Croatia Igor Bišćan 2019–2023 30 18 5 7 060.0 2021 European Championship – Quarter-finals
Croatia Dragan Skočić 2023– 8 3 3 2 037.5 2023 European Championship – Group stage

Last updated: Croatia vs Belarus, 20 November 2023. Statistics include official FIFA-recognised matches only.

Most capped players

Players in bold are still active with Croatia.
With 28 caps, Ivanušec is the most capped player of the U21 team
Before joining the senior team Lovren played 19 matches for the U21 team
# Name Career Caps Goals
1 Luka Ivanušec 2017–2021 28 10
2 Tomislav Vranjić 2002–2005 26 0
3 Tomislav Bušić 2005–2008 25 12
4 Nikola Moro 2017–2021 24 6
5 Josip Tadić 2005–2008 22 5
6 Ivan Leko 1994–2000 21 5
Mato Jajalo 2007–2010 4
8 Tomo Šokota 1997–2000 19 10
Roko Šimić 2021– 8
Nikola Vlašić 2015–2019 7
Lovro Majer 2017–2021 5
Davor Vugrinec 1994–1997 3
Dejan Lovren 2007–2010 3
Mario Lučić 2002–2004 2
Domagoj Vida 2007–2010 2
Dario Smoje 1997–2000 1
Boško Šutalo 2019–2022 1
Mario Carević 2001–2004 0
Luka Vučko 2004–2006 0
Borna Sosa 2017–2020 0

Last updated: Belarus vs Croatia, 20 November 2023

Source: Croatian Football Federation

Top goalscorers

Players in bold are still active with Croatia.
Brozović scored 7 goals for the U21 team before he was promoted to the senior team
# Name Goals Caps Ratio Career
1 Tomislav Bušić 12 29 0.41 2005–2008
2 Tomo Šokota 10 19 0.53 1997–2000
Luka Ivanušec 28 0.36 2017–2021
4 Josip Brekalo 9 17 0.53 2016–2019
5 Eduardo da Silva 8 12 0.67 2004–2005
Stipe Perica 12 0.67 2013–2016
Roko Šimić 19 0.42 2021–
8 Marcelo Brozović 7 13 0.54 2011–2014
Nikola Vlašić 19 0.37 2015–2019
10 Ante Rukavina 6 9 0.67 2007–2008
Marin Ljubičić 11 0.55 2021–
Mario Pašalić 14 0.43 2014–2016
Mihael Mikić 15 0.4 1999–2001
Sandro Kulenović 15 0.4 2019–2021
Nikola Moro 24 0.25 2017–2021

Last updated: Belarus vs Croatia, 20 November 2023

Source: Croatian Football Federation

Record per opponent

under-21 results
  More wins than losses
  As many wins as losses
  Fewer wins than losses

Correct as of 20 November 2023, after the match against Belarus.

Opponent Pld W D L GF GA GD Win %
 Albania 2 1 0 1 4 1 +3 050.00
 Australia U23 1 0 0 1 0 3 −3 000.00
 Austria 4 1 3 0 5 3 +2 025.00
 Azerbaijan 4 4 0 0 11 3 +8 100.00
 Belarus 5 4 1 0 11 1 +10 080.00
 Belgium 4 2 1 1 5 3 +2 050.00
 Bosnia and Herzegovina 9 4 3 2 19 14 +5 044.44
 Bulgaria 6 2 1 3 6 6 +0 033.33
 Chile U23 1 0 0 1 0 1 −1 000.00
 Czech Republic 7 1 3 3 11 10 +1 014.29
 Cyprus 2 1 0 1 2 3 −1 050.00
 Denmark 6 4 0 2 8 5 +3 066.67
 England 7 3 1 3 12 10 +2 042.86
 Estonia 10 9 1 0 23 3 +20 090.00
 Faroe Islands 3 3 0 0 8 3 +5 100.00
 Finland 2 1 0 1 4 3 +1 050.00
 France 5 0 1 4 3 8 −5 000.00
 Georgia 4 1 2 1 4 4 +0 025.00
 Germany 1 1 0 0 2 0 +2 100.00
 Greece 11 6 3 2 22 13 +9 054.55
 Hungary 12 7 4 1 30 14 +16 058.33
 Iceland 2 2 0 0 4 2 +2 100.00
 Republic of Ireland 2 1 1 0 7 3 +4 050.00
 Israel 5 0 2 3 0 5 −5 000.00
 Italy 8 1 4 3 7 10 −3 012.50
 Italy B 2 0 2 0 1 1 +0 000.00
 Latvia 4 3 1 0 9 4 +5 075.00
 Liechtenstein 2 2 0 0 9 0 +9 100.00
 Lithuania 4 4 0 0 13 1 +12 100.00
 FYR Macedonia 4 3 1 0 8 1 +7 075.00
 Malta 4 4 0 0 6 0 +6 100.00
 Mexico 1 0 0 1 0 1 −1 000.00
 Moldova 2 2 0 0 7 0 +7 100.00
 Montenegro 3 1 2 0 4 2 +2 033.33
 Morocco U20 1 0 0 1 0 4 −4 000.00
 Netherlands 2 1 0 1 4 4 +0 050.00
 Norway 5 4 0 1 15 7 +8 080.00
 Poland 3 1 2 0 4 2 +2 033.33
 Portugal 4 1 0 3 3 5 −2 025.00
 Romania 2 0 1 1 1 4 −3 000.00
 Russia 1 0 0 1 3 4 −1 000.00
 San Marino 6 6 0 0 33 0 +33 100.00
 Scotland 6 2 2 2 9 7 +2 033.33
 Serbia 2 1 1 0 5 3 +2 050.00
 Serbia and Montenegro 5 1 1 3 12 12 +0 020.00
 Slovakia 8 3 3 2 14 11 +3 037.50
 Slovenia 11 6 1 4 20 13 +7 054.55
 Spain 9 1 1 7 7 19 −12 011.11
 Sweden 6 3 1 2 9 7 +2 050.00
  Switzerland 5 2 0 3 6 10 −4 040.00
 Togo U23 1 1 0 0 1 0 +1 100.00
 Turkey 1 0 1 0 0 0 +0 000.00
 Ukraine 7 2 2 3 7 8 −1 028.57
 United Arab Emirates U23 1 1 0 0 3 0 +3 100.00
Total: 54 teams played 235 114 53 68 421 261 +160 048.51

Source: Croatian Football Federation

See also

Notes

References

  1. ^ "Croatia U-21". Croatian Football Federation. Retrieved 23 August 2021.
  2. ^ "Ivica Olić publishes a list of players for a friendly tournament in Croatia" (in Croatian). Hrvatski Nogometni Savez. 19 May 2025. Retrieved 11 June 2025.
  3. ^ He coached the U21 team during the first play-off to 2006 European Championship lost 1:3 to Serbia HNS: Serbia-Croatia 3:1, 2005
  4. ^ He coached the U21 team during the second play-off to 2006 European Championship lost 1:2 to Serbia HNS: Croatia-Serbia 1:2, 2005
  5. ^ As a temporary manager he coached the U21 team during the friendly 1:1 draw against Italy HNS: Croatia-Italy 1:1, 2005

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