Croatia vs Czechia Preview, prediction, injury news & lineups | UEFA Nations League 2026-27

Vatreni will look to capitalise on home advantage as Repre aim to end their Nations League campaign on a positive note.

Croatia will host Czechia at the Opus Arena in Osijek on Sunday, November 15, in their final UEFA Nations League League A Group 3 fixture. Both sides will be looking to finish their campaign with a positive result after a difficult run in the competition.

Croatia have endured a challenging group stage, with three defeats in their opening four matches. Czechia have also struggled, losing all four of their games and finding themselves at the bottom of the group.

The reverse fixture ended in a 2-1 victory for Vatreni in September. Slaven Bilić’s side will now look to complete a double over Czechia, who will be aiming to end their losing run.

Kick-off Details

• Competition: UEFA Nations League 2026-27
• Date: Sunday, November 15, 2026
• Time: 7:45 PM UTC / 8:45 PM CET [1:15 AM IST, November 16]
• Venue: Opus Arena, Osijek, Croatia
• Referee: To be announced
• VAR: In use

Form

Croatia: L-L-L-L-W

Czechia: L-L-L-L-L

Players to watch out for

Luka Modrić (Croatia)

The experienced midfielder remains an important figure in Croatia’s setup. His ability to dictate the tempo, control possession and create opportunities will be crucial as the hosts look to dominate the midfield.

Pavel Šulc (Czechia)

Šulc offers attacking quality and movement in the final third. His ability to find space between the opposition’s defensive and midfield lines could give Czechia an important outlet against Vatreni.

Match Facts

• Croatia have won three of their seven meetings with Czechia, while four matches have ended in draws.
• Repre are yet to beat Vatreni.
• Vatreni suffered a 2-1 defeat against England at Wembley on November 12, their fourth loss in five Nations League matches.
• Czechia have lost all five of their Group A3 matches and are yet to collect a point in the competition.

Injury & team news

Slaven Bilić has several injury concerns to manage ahead of Croatia‘s final Nations League group fixture. Josip Šutalo has been ruled out with a hamstring injury, while Marin Pongračić is expected to remain sidelined until late November with a thigh problem.

Kristijan Jakić is dealing with a knee-ligament injury, Franjo Ivanović has a head injury, and Luka Sučić remains doubtful with a muscle issue.

Ivan Hašek, meanwhile, has no unavailable players listed for Czechia ahead of the encounter. Tomáš Souček has returned to the national squad after recovering from an ankle-ligament injury that kept him out of the previous international window.

Head-to-head stats

• Matches Played: 06
• Croatia: 03
• Czechia: 00
• Draw: 03

Predicted Lineup

Croatia (4-2-3-1)

Dominik Livaković; Josip Stanišić, Niko Galešić, Luka Vušković, Joško Gvardiol; Luka Modrić, Mateo Kovačić; Ivan Perišić, Lovro Majer, Nikola Vlašić; Igor Matanović.

Czechia (4-2-3-1)

Lukáš Horníček; Vladimír Coufal, Martin Vitík, Robin Hranáč, Jiří Sláma; Alex Král, Michal Sadílek; Ondřej Lingr, Lukáš Ambros, Pavel Šulc; Ryan Don Naderi.

Match Prediction

Croatia have struggled defensively during the Nations League campaign, but they have a strong record against Czechia and won the reverse fixture. Playing at home should give Bilić’s side an advantage, particularly with Modrić and Kovačić providing experience in midfield.

Czechia have lost their last five matches and have found it difficult to keep clean sheets. Croatia should have enough attacking quality to secure another narrow victory.

Prediction: Croatia 2-1 Czechia.

Telecast Details

US: Fubo Sports, ViX, FOX Soccer Plus

UK: Prime Video PPV

India: SONY Sports Network, SONY LIV

Nigeria: SuperSport GOtv LaLiga

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