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Celtic star Josip Juranovic has revealed that he is deliberately hiding all the growing transfer interest surrounding him in order to focus solely on Croatia’s bid for World Cup glory.
Linked with Atlético Madrid and several English Premier League teams, the right-back bolstered his market value with an outstanding display for his country in last Friday’s dramatic quarter-final win over Brazil.
Juranovic will once again be one of Croatia’s key men as they look to beat Lionel Messi’s Argentina in Qatar tomorrow night and replicate the 2018 feat of reaching the final.
Celtic star Josip Juranovic has avoided transfer speculation linking him with a move away from Parkhead
The 27-year-old will be watched by interested clubs who know he could leave Celtic next month after contract negotiations stalled.
However, with his existing deal running until 2026, Parkhead’s side would make a big profit on the £2.5m paid to Legia Warsaw in August 2021 and have already signed Canadian Alistair Johnston as a potential replacement.
However, Juranovic has made it clear to his representatives that he does not want to hear about a possible trade until after his World Cup mission is complete.
Asked how he felt about mentioning his name in relation to Atlético, Juranovic said: “Honestly, I haven’t read what was written since we got to the World Cup.
“We are only focused on the national team. I even told my agent not to send me anything. I’m not interested at all right now.
‘I want to do something for myself, for my future sons and daughters, I want to tell them the story of what we did and feel proud.’
The 27-year-old has won fans across the football world for his performances in Croatia’s World Cup campaign.
Joining Celtic has been a critical stage for Juranovic in his attempt to develop his career. Acknowledging that he previously did not have the profile of other Croatian players, he emphasized that mental toughness has been an essential ingredient in his rise to prominence after starting Dubrava and Hajduk Split in his homeland.
“It may not be a player worth 20-30 million euros, as today’s media puts out all kinds of figures, but you have to know one thing,” he said. ‘I never gave up, even when I was at Hajduk and Dubrava, and not now at Celtic or with Croatia.
‘My parents taught me to look ahead and not look at what others write. There was skepticism in Hajduk, but I always looked ahead. Life tells strange stories, I was adamant that I needed to prove myself on the pitch.’
That iron will extends to the confrontation with Messi and company. Rejecting any comment on the fear of Argentina, Juranovic pointed instead to the exceptional unity within the Croatian team.
“Honestly, we shouldn’t be afraid of anyone and we should look at ourselves,” he said.
But he has told his agent not to contact him about possible moves until after the tournament is over.
Tomorrow we will see the analysis with the coach and we will decide how and what to play.
‘The secret is that we are all a true family and we stick together. We breathe for each other from the first minute to the last, and that is simply the secret of our success.’
Nor is there little quality in Zlatko Dalic’s squad. While they now lack a forward of the class of Mario Mandzukic, Croatia have one of the best midfields in the tournament.
At 37, Luka Modric continues to control the matches with masterful poise, supported by Marcelo Brozovic and Mateo Kovacic.
“Luka, Marcelo and Mateo is the best Croatian midfield, I don’t know when it will happen again,” Juranovic admitted.
‘Passing the buck to them is safer than putting your money in the bank.
‘It’s easier when you play with them. I am lucky to share a dressing room with players like this and to be able to buy that knowledge.
‘I am very happy to be there. We want to make our people happy, go home proud and with our heads held high. We Argentines also want that, and we are such a small country with a big heart.’
The former Legia Warsaw star also praised Croatian talisman Luka Modric for his performances in Qatar.
Juranovic also praised 20-year-old centre-back Josko Gvardiol, who is attracting a lot of interest from Chelsea, Manchester United and Manchester City.
“I also had the opportunity to play against him with our clubs, I lost,” Juranovic said, reflecting on this season’s Champions League games against RB Leipzig with Celtic.
“As a person, Josko is a boy who enjoys every moment, he likes being on the football field and he enjoys being in the national team and being with all of us. I hope he has a great career.
Croatia striker Bruno Petkovic is convinced they will not focus solely on stopping seven-time Ballon d’Or winner Messi tomorrow night.
“We still don’t have a specific plan to stop Messi and usually we don’t focus on stopping one player, but the whole team,” Petkovic said. ‘We are going to try to stop them as a team and not with man marking. Argentina is not just Messi, it has a series of great players. We have to stop the entire Argentine team.’
Bruno Petkovic scored the equalizer in stoppage time to set up Croatia’s victory on penalties over Brazil
Petkovic scored the equalizer after extra time that set up Croatia’s victory in a penalty shootout over Brazil.
“With each passing day I am becoming more and more aware of the magnitude of this goal,” he said. “Maybe I’ll experience something similar in the semi-final or beyond.”
Remarkably, Croatia have now won all four penalties they have been involved in at World Cups. When asked about the secret to his success at such harrowing times, Petkovic praised the mental strength of the team, as well as the skill of goalkeeper Dominik Livakovic, who saved a penalty against Brazil after three in their round of 16 shootout against Brazil. . Japan.
“I think a lot of people who aren’t professional footballers can take successful penalties,” Petkovic said. ‘The difference, however, is how mentally strong you are. There is enormous pressure that you have never experienced before. But it also helps when you have a world-class goalkeeper.’