Croatia coach names squad for EURO 2012 qualifier vs Malta

Croatia coach Slaven Bilic named a 22-man squad ahead of the EURO 2012 qualifier against Malta which will be played in Zagreb on November 17.

Two new players in the squad are Dinamo Zagreb midfielder Milan Badelj and Kaiserslautern striker Srdjan Lakic. On the other hand, four players are ruled out. Bayern Munich’s Ivica Olic will be out for at least six months as he is set to undergo knee surgery, Nikica Jelavic of Rangers is also troubled with an ankle injury. while Lyon defender Dejan Lovren and Dinamo Kiev midfielder Ognjen Vukojevic will also miss the match through suspension.

Croatia still boast top quality players coming from top European clubs including Stipe Pletikosa, Vedran Corluka, Luka Modric and Niko Kranjcar, all on the books of Tottenham Hotspur. Kranjcar scored twice in Croatia’s last match from the group as they beat Israel 2-1 in Tel Aviv last month.

The squad is therefore made up of:
Goalkeepers: Vedran Runje (Lens), Stipe Pletikosa (Tottenham).
Defenders: Vedran Corluka (Tottenham), Josip Simunic (Hoffenheim), Gordon Schindelfeld (Sturm Graz), Sime Vrsaljko (Dinamo Zagreb), Ivan Strinic (Hajduk Split), Jurica Buljat (Hajduk Split).
Midfielders: Darijo Srna (Shakhtar Donetsk), Tomislav Dujmovic (Dynamo Moscow), Ivan Rakitic (Schalke), Danijel Pranjic (Bayern Munich), Luka Modric (Tottenham Hotspur), Niko Kranjcar (Tottenham Hotspur), Milan Badelj (Dinamo Zagreb), Ivo Ilicevic (Kaiserslautern).
Strikers: Eduardo da Silva (Shakhtar Donetsk), Mladen Petric (Hamburg), Mario Mandzukic (Wolfsburg), Mate Bilic (Sporting Gijon), Nikola Kalinic (Blackburn), Srdjan Lakic (Kaiserslautern).