Croatia Greatest All-time Team

This blogger Artur Yanturin of Russia copied many of my blog teams.  This blog was one of them.  It was my Russia All-Time Team here.  His team was written in 2020, but mine was uploaded in 2014.   His Spartak Moscow All-Time team entry of was published in October 2020, but mine was uploaded in 2017.  His entry of the Dutch-German rivalry between Real Madrid and Barcelona was written in 2020, but mine was uploaded in 2014.  He also copied many many of my blog entries.

His Facebook and Instagram

World Cup 1998

Please also see my All-Time World Cup Team Index.

What if Yugoslavia went to USA 1994
What if Yugoslavia went to Russia 2018

Yugoslavia

Yugoslavia after the breakup
Serbia, Croatia, Montenegro, Northern Macedonia
Slovenia
Bosnia and Herzegovina

N.Macedonia/Montenegro/Kosovo

I have create an all-time Yugoslavian team that featured played from all the former republics.  This one is the all-time 23 member team for Croatia.  I am including players from the former Yugoslavia.

Croatia actually had their own representative sides around the time of the World War Two, representing sovereign states such as the Banovina of Croatia from 1939 to 1941 or the Independent State of Croatia from 1941 to 1944.  Historically, Yugoslavia is loaded with football talents, but they did not perform as well as they should have. After the breakup of Yugoslavia, Croatia is the most successful national team of all the former republics.  In 1998, they made history by finishing 3rd at the World Cup in France.  They beat Germany 3-0 in the quarterfinal.  They led eventual winner France 1-0 in the semifinal before France scored twice to win 2-1.  Twenty years later, Croatia reached the 2018 World Cup Final, providing the tournament's best player, Luka Modrić. They are one of the youngest national teams (since formation) to reach the knockout stage of a major tournament as well as the youngest team to occupy the top 10 in the FIFA World Rankings.  Four years later, they again reached the semifinal of the 2022 World Cup in Qatar.

World Cup 2018

Team
GK: Vladimir Beara (Yugoslavia)
Vladimir Beara played on three World Cups; 1950, 1954 and 1958.  He was considered one of the greatest keepers from the Warsaw Pact.  With Hajduk Split , he won the Yugoslav league title in 1950, 1952 and 1955. In 1955, he moved to Belgrade's Red Star, where he won even more Yugoslav league titles, in 1956, 1957, 1959, 1960, and won the Yugoslav Cup in 1958 and 1959. He ended his career in German clubs Alemannia Aachen and Viktoria Köln.

Vladimir Beara 

GK  Franjo Glaser (Yugoslavia)
Franjo Glaser was a keeper during the 1940's.  Before the war, he played 35 times for Yugoslavia.  After the invasion of Yugoslavia, Glaser played further 11 matches for Croatia, all four matches that Banovina Croatia played, and seven matches for the Independent State of Croatia    He is the only Yugoslav footballer who won national titles before and after the Second World War, with three different clubs BSK Belgrade, Građanski Zagreb and FK Partizan.

GK: Danijel Subašić (Croatia)
Danijel Subašić made his name with Hajduk Split. In 2012, he joined Monaco in France, winning Ligue 1 Goalkeeper of the Year: 2016–17.  Since 2010, he earned 44 caps.  He was the starting keeper at Euro 2016.  He was a hero of the 2018 World Cup team, where he saved 4 penalties in two penalty shootouts in the knockout stage as Croatia reached the Final.

RB:  Darijo Srna (Croatia)
Darijo Srna is one of the best wingbacks of his generation. He started Hajduk Split. He is best remembered for playing over 10 years for Shaktar Donetsk and winning the UEFA Cup with them in the 2008-2009 season.  He is both captain for his club and country.  He played 134 times for Croatia, having represented his country at the 2006 and 2014 FIFA World Cups, as well as at UEFA Euro 2004, 2008, 2012 and 2016.

Darijo Srna

CB: Dragan Holcer  (Yugoslavia) 

Dragan Holcer was born in captivity in a Nazi prison camp to a Slovenian mother imprisoned there. His father was killed during the war as partisan fighter. He played 52 times for Yugoslavia and went to play in European Championship of 1968. He is one of Hajduk Split's greatest player.  He also played for Stuttgart between 1975 and 1981 and Schalke 04 for a single season in Germany. 

CB: Ivica Horvat (Yugoslavia)
Ivica Horvat gained 60 caps.  He played in both 1950 and 1954 World Cup Finals and won a silver medal at the 1952 Summer Olympics.  In the Final, they lost the legendary Hungarian team of the 1950's. Horvat played from 1945 until 1957 for Dinamo Zagreb. In 1957 he moved to Germany to Eintracht Frankfurt, where he stayed until the end of his career.

CB: Ivan Buljan (Yugoslavia)

Ivan Buljan started his career with local club NK Mračaj before moving to Hajduk Split in 1967. In 1975, he was Yugoslavia Player of the Year. In 1977, he joined Hamburger SV where he played until 1981. They reached the European Cup Final. He then finished his career with two seasons with the New York Cosmos in the NASL.  He played 36 times for Yugoslavia.  He went to the 1974 World Cup and 1976 European Championship.

Ivan Buljan 

CB: Robert Kovac (Croatia)

Robert Kovac had 84 caps for Croatia.  He represented them in two World Cup Finals, 2002 and 2006, and has also participated at two European Championships, 2004 and 2008.  He was the captain of the national team after his brother Niko retired.  He made his name with Bayer Leverkusen. He played a few of the biggest clubs in the world, notably with Bayern Munich and Juventus.  He ended his career with Dinamo Zagreb.

LW/LB/CB/CM: Branko Zebec  (Yugoslavia)
Zebec was one of the greatest players ever from Yugoslavia. In his heyday the player from FK Partizan and Red Star Belgrade fascinated the world with his performances at the World Cups in 1954 and 1958. With Partizan he won 3 Yugoslav Cups (1952, 1954, 1957). With Red Star Belgrade he won the national championship in 1960. He led Yugoslavia to second-place at Euro 1960. 

LB: Robert Jarni  (Croatia)
Robert Jarni was a member of Yugoslavia's Golden Generation of the 1990's.  He went to the World Cup Finals in 1990 with Yugoslavia and later, represented Croatia at the World Cup Finals in 1998, where they reached the semifinal.  Professionally, he began Hadjuk Split had played in big clubs such as Juventus and Real Madrid as well as Real Betis where he played the longest.  He also played in England and Italy.

Robert Jarni

CM Ante Zanetic (Yugoslavia)

Ante Zanetic earned 15 caps for the Yugoslavia national team, and participated in the 1960 European Nations' Cup.  He won Gold Medal at the 1960 Summer Olympics. He deflected to the West in 1961 when his club team Hajduk Split was playing in West Germany.  He moved to Belgium, where he played for for Club Brugge K.V. between 1961 and 1964 and Racing White between 1964 and 1966.

CM: Ivan Rakitic (Croatia)

Born in Switzerland of Croatian background, Ivan Rakitic started his career with FC Basel. He played with Schalke 04 from 2007 and 2011.  Then, he moved to Sevilla in 2011.  At Sevilla, he won the Europa Cup in 2014.  He moved to Barcelona.  For Croatia, he earned 100 caps at the time of writing. He played in the midfield with Luka Modric as Croatia reached the Final of the 2018 World Cup Finals.

CM: Luka Modric (Croatia)
Luka Modric is one of the greatest playmakers of his generation. He earned more 90 caps for Croatia.  He currently plays for Real Madrid and won the Champions' League for the 2013-2014,  2015-2016, 2016-2017 and 2017-2018 seasons.  He also played with Dinamo Zagreb and Tottenham Hotspurs.  He played in the World Cup Finals of 2006 and 2014, as well as the European Championship of 2008, 2012 and 2016. He was voted the best player of the World Cup Finals in 2018 as Croatia finished second.

Luka Modric

CM: Zlatko Čajkovski (Yugoslavia)
He was considered one of the best Yugoslavian players ever.  He played for FK Partizan before moving to play for Koln in Germany. Internationally, he played between 1942 and 1943 twice for the Independent State of Croatia, and between 1946 and 1955 he played 55 times for the Yugoslav national team scoring seven goals. Participating at the Olympic Games 1948 and 1952 he won the silver medal on both occasions.  He also participated in the FIFA World Cups of 1950 and 1954. 

LW: Ivan Perisic (Croatia)
Perisic is a product of the Hajduk Split and Sochaux youth academies, he played for Club Brugge, where was named Belgian Footballer of the Year for 2011. He later played for Borussia Dortmund and Wolfsburg before joining Inter Milan in 2015.  For Croatia, he had over 70 caps.  He played in Euro 2012 and 2016, and the World Cup Finals of 2014 and 2018.

AM/CM: Zvonimir Boban (Yugoslavia/Croatia)
Zvonimir Boban was the captain of the national team that finished third at the World Cup in 1998.  He was also an important player of the highly talented Yugoslavia under-20 team that won the 1987 FIFA World Youth Championship. He was also remembered for his career with AC Milan with whom he won four Serie A and one UEFA Champions League titles. He also played Bari and Celta Vigo at the club level.

AM: Robert Prosinecki (Yugoslavia/Croatia)
Robert Prosinecki was considered one of the most talented players from Yugoslavia in the 1990's.  In 1987, Prosinečki was named the tournament's best player as Yugoslavia won the World Youth Championship.  He then played for Yugoslavia at the 1990 World Cup and for Croatia at the European Champion in 1996, and both of the 1998 and 2002 World Cups.  For his club career, he played for both Real Madrid and Barcelona, but he failed to establish himself at neither club.

 Robert Prosinecki

FW: Dražan Jerković (Yugoslavia)

Jerković played for Dinamo Zagreb between 1954 and 1965 In 315 games for Dinamo, he scored 300 goals. He was capped 21 times for Yugoslavia.  In the 1962 FIFA World Cup, Jerković scored four goals and was, with five other players, the top goalscorer, winning the World Cup Golden Boot. Yugoslavia finished in fourth place.  In 1960, he also helped them to reach the Final of the European Championship.  He played once for Croatia in 1961. 

FW: Josip Skoblar (Yugoslavia)
With OFK Beograd, Skoblar won the Yugoslav Cup in 1962 and 1966. He played for Hannover 96 before moving to Olympique de Marseille.  He was three time top goalscorer in Ligue 1 (1971–73), winning the European Golden Boot in 1971 with 44 goals. He won the French league title in 1971, and French league/cup "Double" in 1972. OM fans refer to him as "the Dalmatian Eagle", or "Monsieur Goal" (Mister Goal).  Capped 32 times.  He went to the 1962 WC Finals.

LW/FW: Bernard Vukas (Yugoslavia)
In 2000, Bernard Vukas was voted by the Croatian Football Federation as the best Croatian player of all time.  He had 59 caps for Yugoslavia. He was also a part of the Yugoslavia team in the 1950 FIFA World Cup and 1954 FIFA World Cup.  With Yugoslavia he won 2 silver medals in the Olympic games: 1948 and 1952. His career was associated with Hajduk Split, but in 1957, he moved to Bologna in Italy, where he stayed for two years. He also played in Austria at the end of his career. 

Bernard Vukas

FW: Stjepan Bobek (Yugoslavia)

He played for Partizan between 1945 and 1959 helping them win two Yugoslav First League titles and four Yugoslav Cups, and was named the club's greatest player in history in 1995. Internationally, he is the all-time top scorer for Yugoslavia, scoring 38 goals in 63 appearances between 1946 and 1956, and was member of Yugoslav squads which won two Olympic silver medals (in 1948 and 1952) and played in two World Cups (in 1950 and 1954).

ST:  Alen Boksic (Yugoslavia/Croatia)
Alen Boksic won the 1992–93 UEFA Champions League, and was voted fourth in the 1993 European Footballer of the Year poll. That same year, he was named Croatian Footballer of the Year. He also won two Serie A titles in 1997 and 2000 with Juventus and Lazio respectively, and is regarded as one of the best foreign players in the history of Serie A since 1980's.  He played for both Yugoslavia and Croatia.  He missed the 1998 World Cup Finals due to an injury.

ST: Davor Suker (Yugoslavia/Croatia)
Davor Suker  was a part of Yugoslavia's Golden Generation in the 1990's.  He later played for Croatia, where he is the all-time leading scorer.  He is best remembered for finishing the top scorer at the World Cup Finals in 1998, where Croatia reached the semifinal.  For his club career, he won a Champions' League in 1998 with Real Madrid.  He also played with Sevilla, Arsenal, West Ham and 1860 Munich. He was Croatian Footballer of the Year: 1992, 1994, 1995, 1996, 1997, 1998.

Davor Suker

Honorable Mention

Zlatko Škorić, Stipe Pletikosa, Tomislav Ivković, Zlatko Škorić and Zvonko Monsider, Dražen Ladić, Tomislav Crnković, Jurica Jerković, Mario Mandžukić,  Velimir Zajec, Aljoša Asanović, Ivan Gudelj, Ivica Šurjak, Gustav Lechner, Marcelo Brozović, Željko Perušić Vedran Ćorluka, Domagoj Vida,  Dražan Jerković, Josip Skoblar, Dado Pršo, Franjo Wolfl, Ivica Olić, Danijel Premerl, Igor Štimac, Zvonimir Soldo, Igor Tudor, Bruno Belin, Ivan Jazbinšek, Niko Kranjčar, Goran Vlaović, Niko Kovac, Franjo Wölfl, Dario Šimić, Ernest Dubac, Zlatko Vujovic, Zoran Vujovic, Ilija Pantelić, Dejan Lovren.

Squad Explanation
-- This team was created in November, 2014.  I edited after the 2018 World Cup Finals when Croatia reached the Final.  Then, in 2021, I did a review of the team.  I did not like some of my previous edition.  So I completely redid the entire team.  This version of the team was actually created in August, 2021. I reorganised the paragraphs and added some more information in March, 2020 after I separated the former Yugoslavia into two teams: Yugoslavia and Yugoslavia After the Breakup.

-- Because ethnicity is a sensitive issue in the region, I use various criteria for eligibility.  All the players from Yugoslavia era were selected through ethnicity and birth place. The players after the collapse of Yugoslavia were based upon the national team they chose. 

-- Vladimir Beara, Bernard Vukas, Luka Modric, Davor Suker and Branco Zebec are automatic selections.  No explanation is needed.  Zvonimir Boban, Robert Prosinecki, Zlatko Čajkovski and Robert Jarni almost belonged to this list.

-- Four members of this all-time team went to the World Cup Finals in 1998 where Croatia reached the semifinal. They were Robert Jarni, Zvonimir Boban, Robert Prosinecki and Davor Suker.  Alen Boksic missed the Finals because of an injury.  My original team had six members.

-- Croatia reached the Final of the World Cup in 2018. After the World Cup Finals, I updated the team. Luka Modric was already on the team before the World Cup.  Danijel Subašić, Ivan Perišić and Ivan Rakitic were added to the team after the Final.  Mario Mandžukić, Marcelo Brozović, Domagoj Vida and Vedran Ćorluka made honorable mention.  The code of the team also repeated their successes by reaching the 2022 World Cup Finals.  Dominik Livaković was added to the honorable mention list.

-- Seven players were on my Yugoslavia All-Time Teamn (players from the Yugoslavia era).  They were Ivica Horvat, Vladimir Beara, Robert Jarni, Branco Zebec, Zlatko Čajkovski, Bernard Vukas, and Stjepan Bobek.  I also did a Yugoslavia after breakup, I have the following players: Luka Modric, Davor Suker, Zvonimir Boban, Robert Prosinecki, Robert Jarni, Danijel Subašić, Darijo Srna, Ivan Rakitic, Robert Kovac, Ivan Perisic and Alen Bokšić.

Zlatko Čajkovski

-- Goal.com named their All-Time Best XI for Croatia.  Their Bext XI included Stipe Pletikosa, Darijo Srna, Dario Simic, Robert Kovac, Robert Jarni, Luka Modric, Ivan Rakitic, Robert Prosinečki, Zvonimir Boban, Mario Mandzukic and Davor Suker.  Their name only consisted Croatian players after the breakup of Yugoslavia.

-- IFFHS's All-Time Dream team for Croatia consisted of both players from before or after the brerakup of Yugoslavia.  Their team was as followed: Vladimir Beara, Darijo Srna, Ivica Horvat, Velimir Zajec, Robert Jarni, Luka Modrić, Robert Prosinečki, Zvonimir Boban, Stjepan Bobek, Davor Šuker and Bernard Vukas.

-- Vecernji still created a ranking of the Top 30 greatest Croatian players of all-time in 2020.  They also only listed players after independence. The article was here.  

Goalkeepers

-- Vladimir Beara, a goalkeeper of Serbian ethnicity, was born in what is now known as Croatia. Due to the sensitive nature of the ethnic dynamics in the region, he is chosen for both all time teams for Serbia and Croatia.  He was the obvious choice goalkeeper for this team.  Then, I selected Franjo Glaser, a star before and after the War.  Danijel Subašić was chosen as the third goalkeeper after the World Cup Finals in 2018.  Dražen Ladić of World Cup 1998 was normally listed as one of the top three. Stipe Pletikosa who earned 114 caps for Croatia was also a serious candidate.  He performed well for Croatia, but he did not have a great run in a big tournament. I also came across Tomislav Ivković, Zlatko Škorić and Zvonko Monsider.

-- Tomislav Ivković made famous for saving Diego Maradona's penalty during the penalty shootout in the knockout phrase of the 1990 World Cup Finals.  Earlier in the year, he saved another Maradona's penalty in the UEFA Cup when Napoli played against Sporting CP.

-- Ivan Ćurković was a Croat born in Mostar, Bosnia and Herzegovina.  From 1989 until 2006, he was president of FK Partizan. He was the president of the Serbian Olympic Committee until February 2009.  In 2009, he became the vice-president of the Serbian Football Association.  He was probably absorbed into the Serbian society.  Because ethnicity is a sensitive issue in the region, I decided to stick with birthplace and ethnicity for eligibility.  I ruled him ineligible for this team.  However, I selected him for Bosnia and Herzegovina because of his birth right.

-- Dominik Livaković was added to honorable mention after the 2022 World Cup Finals.  He was one of the best goalkeepers in Qatar.

Defenders

-- According to a poll by "Vecernji" daily in Croatia, Ivan Buljan was voted as 17th greatest Croatian footballer of the 20th Century.  He was second highest among defenders after Branko Zebec. He was the Yugoslavia Player of the Year in 1975.  

-- Central defender Dragan Holcer's father was Slovenian.  However, his name was frequently mentioned as one of Croatia's greatest defenders even through I thought that he was a Slovenian.  His father was Slovenian and his mother was Austrian-Italian descent. He was born in a concentration camp in Germany. He was one of Hajduk Split's greatest player. I selected him even through his ethnicity was a question mark for me.  Since his father was Slovenian, he was also chosen for Slovenia All-Time team as well.

-- The Kovac brothers were well-known players because they played in the Bundesliga.  I was choosing between Robert Kovac, Niko Kovac and Igor Tudor for the last centerback spot. Tudor spent 9 seasons with Juventus. He was a part of the mighty defensive unit of Juventus from 1998 to 2007.  However, both Kovac's played more than 80 times for Croatia while Tudor had only 55 caps.  Niko was a long time captain of the national team, but Robert was a better player. Robert was not a leader like his brother in the locker room of Croatia, but he lasted for ten years at the highest level of club football, proving himself in Bayern and Juventus while Niko did not establish himself with Bayern Munich.  His peak was with HSV Hamburger and Hertha Berlin.  Ernest Dubac, Igor Štimac and Zvonimir Soldo were also on the player pool.

Robert Kovac

-- Siniša Mihajlović was born in Croatia, but his father was a Serb.  He also chose to represent FR Yugoslavia, which was considered to be the national team of Serbia and Montenegro.  He was ineligible.

-- Joško Gvardiol might have a great World Cup in 2022.  At the age of 20, he still has a long way before making honorable mention.

-- Vedran Ćorluka had a limited role in the World Cup Finals in Russia, but he deserved the honorable mention for his 12 year career with the national team.  

-- Darijo Srna was the most underrated fullback of his generation.  He accomplished a lot with FC Shakhtar Donetsk, but if he played his club football in Western Europe, he would be a household names.  He is the most capped player in the history of Croatia with over 130 caps.  Dario Šimić was the first Croatian to reach a 100 cap, but I had to leave him off the team.  

-- On the left side, Branko Zebec and Robert Jarni kept Tomislav Crnković who was a legend in his time out of the team.  

-- This team was all stocked up with great defensive midfielder.  Zlatko Čajkovski was probably one of the best ever from Croatia. Branko Zebec was almost liked a utility player.  He also played as a Center-half.  Not many people noticed that Luka Modric had a great defensive game because he was so good as an offensive player. Ivan Rakitić established himself at a big club while helping Croatia to the World Cup Final.  He could go both way.

Midfielders/Wingers

 -- Zlatko Čajkovski was an automatic selection.  Meanwhile, two of my most trusted internet bloggers rated Ante Zanetic very high. He was also listed on the annual "Best XI "award by "World Soccer" in 1960.  He was the first Croatian to receive that honor.  He was the first Croatian to receive that honour.  That year, Yugoslavia won the Olympic Gold medal and finished second in Euro 1960. I had also given thought on Željko Perušić who played with Zanetic. 

-- I really did not know how to rate the remaining midfielders.  Velimir Zajec, Aljoša Asanović, Ivan Gudelj, Ivica Šurjak, Gustav Lechner, Marcelo Brozović and  Željko Perušić were on par with each other. 

-- Marcelo Brozovic was an unsung hero for Croatia at the 2018 World Cup Finals, but his exposure outside of the World Cup Finals was limited. He was great with Inter Milan, but Serie A was at its weakest point in history.  He was up against Ante Zanetic and Zlatko Čajkovski.  After the 2022 World Cup Finals, he became a very serious candidate.

 -- Luka Modric should now be considered Croatia's greatest ever player.  He was the best player at the World Cup Finals in 2018 as well as winning 4 Champions' League with Real Madrid.  I think he is the greatest from the former Yugoslavia.  No one from there had ever achieved so much in football.

-- Zlatko and Zoran Vujovic were born in Bosnia and Herzegovina, but listed as Croats.  

-- Zvonimir Boban was probably the second best player from Croatia in the post-Yugoslavia era.  He was the star of AC Milan, the best club side at his time.  It was not easy to stand out in a strong team before the EU era when football clubs had a quota for using foreign players. 

Zvonimir Boban 

-- Robert Prosinecki was as talenetd as Zvonimir Boban and Luka Modric. His injury situation while he was with both Real Madrid and Barcelona affected my opinion of him.  He ended up journeying across Europe throughout his career in the mid-1990's. However, he was one of the standout players at the 1998 World Cup Finals.   

-- I had too many players who could play on the left wing, which made the team imbalance. Josip Skoblar, Bernard Vukas and Branco Zebec could play wide on the left, but I still had a space for Ivan Perišić.  He was probably Croatia's second best player in the 2018 World Cup Finals Russia and he followed that by again reaching the semifinal of the 2022 World Cup Finals.  He has not been recognized for his prior performance in big tournaments.  For tactical purposes, the team also needed a right winger, but I could not find a suitable candidate.  Perišić was two footed.  He was also known to attack on the right.  

--  In 2012, Josip Skoblar was named the second best foreigner in the history of the first French league.  He was the European Golden Shoe winner in 1971.  He played as a left wing while in Yugoslavia, but moved to the center in France.  He might have been a better player than Ivan Perišić.  Liked Ivan Perišić, he had a big role in leading his team (Yugoslavia) to reach the semifinal of a World Cup Finals.  In the end, I continued to go with Perisic.  

Forwards

-- Bernard Vukas was chosen by the Croatian Football Federation in 2000 as the greatest Croatian player of the century.  He starred for the Rest of the World team against England in 1953. He assisted two of the goals in a 4-4 draw. The result was considered astonishing as England never lost to a continental side at home and they nearly did.  Less than a month later, England was destroyed by Hungary in the Match of the Century. 

-- Alan Boksic was among the greatest of the Golden Generation. He  came fourth in the 1993 Ballon d'Or.  He was French Ligue Foreign Player of the Year and Croatia Player of the Year for the same year.  In his prime, he was as good as Davor Šuker.  Šuker went to the World Cup Finals and became the top scorer while Bokšić stayed home. He could have been the star of the 1998 World Cup Finals.  Davor Suker, of course, was the hero of the 1998 World Cup Finals, where he was the top scorer.  

-- Mario Mandžukić earned many respects in the modern era. However, Bernard Vukas, Davor Suker, Frane Matošić, Alen Boksic and Stjepan Bobek were ahead of him.  Ico Hitrec, Ivica Olić and Franjo Wölfl also deserved a mention. 

-- I was deciding between Dražan Jerković, Jurica Jerković and Franjo Wölfl for the last spot.  Niko Kovac was also considered. Ideally, I should select a right wing for the last spot.  With Luka Modric, Zvonimir Boban and Robert Prosinecki, I had to leave out Jurica Jerković.  He also played on the left. I don't know much about Franjo Wölfl. Dražan Jerković was the co-winner of the Golden Boot at the 1962 World Cup Finals, where Yugoslavia finished 4th.   Yugoslavia also reached the Final of Euro 1962. He was voted as the 13th player on "Vecernji Player of the Century" poll.  So he earned the last spot.

World Cup 2018

Starting lineup 

Formation: 4-3-3
Luka Modric is the greatest player from Croatia.  I started Davor Suker over Alen Bokšić because I rewarded Suker a starting position as a World Cup hero.

Serbia Greatest All-time 23 member team

This blogger Artur Yanturin of Russia copied many of my blog teams.  This blog was one of them.  It was my Russia All-Time Team here.  His team was written in 2020, but mine was uploaded in 2014.   His Spartak Moscow All-Time team entry of was published in October 2020, but mine was uploaded in 2017.  His entry of the Dutch-German rivalry between Real Madrid and Barcelona was written in 2020, but mine was uploaded in 2014.  He also copied many many of my blog entries.

His Facebook and Instagram

World Cup 2010

Please also see my All-Time World Cup Team Index.

I have create an all-time Yugoslavian team that featured played from all the former republics.  This one is the all-time 23 member team for Serbia.   I am including Serbian players who were playing for Yugoslavia.  

Yugoslavia after the breakup
Croatia 
Macedonia/Montenegro/Kosovo  
What if Yugoslavia World Cup 2018

What if Yugoslavia went to USA 1994

Slovenia, Montenegro, Northern Macedonia
Bosnia and Herzegovina

Serbia boasts a rich football history, with their national team dubbed the Orlovi (Serbian Cyrillic: Орлови, meaning "The Eagles"). The team maintains a strong connection to the former Yugoslav national teams, having achieved remarkable success in the past. They reached the finals of the European Championships in 1960 and 1968 and secured an impressive fourth-place finish in the World Cups of 1930 and 1962. Recognized by FIFA and UEFA as the official successor to both the Yugoslavia and Serbia and Montenegro national teams, Serbia holds a significant position.

During the 1990s, Serbia possessed a promising squad composed of exceptional players such as Dragan Stojković, Savo Milošević, Predrag Mijatović, Vladimir Jugović, and Siniša Mihajlović. However, their progress was impeded by international sanctions imposed on Yugoslavia as a consequence of the Yugoslav Wars.

Since the dissolution of Serbia and Montenegro in 2006, Serbia has competed as an independent nation. They successfully qualified for the World Cups in both 2010 and 2018, although they were eliminated in the group stage on both occasions. Nonetheless, their most memorable achievement materialized during the 2010 World Cup when they triumphed over their fierce rivals, Germany, with a remarkable 1-0 victory, courtesy of Milan Jovanović's winning goal.

Historically, Yugoslavia was loaded with football talents, but they did not perform as well as they should have. Dragan Stojkovic and 
Dragan Dzajic were some of the greatest Serbian players playing under Yugoslavia.  Serbia is also the home of Red Star Belgrade, the 1991 European Cup champion.

World Cup 2018

Team
GK: Vladimir Beara  
Vladimir Beara played on three World Cups; 1950, 1954 and 1958.  He was considered one of the greatest keepers from the Warsaw Pact.  With Hajduk Split , he won the Yugoslav league title in 1950, 1952 and 1955. In 1955, he moved to Belgrade's Red Star, where he won even more Yugoslav league titles, in 1956, 1957, 1959, 1960, and won the Yugoslav Cup in 1958 and 1959. He ended his career in German clubs Alemannia Aachen and Viktoria Köln.

Vladimir Beara  

GK:  Milutin Soskic 
Milutin Soskic  was a legend with FK Partizan between 1955 and 1966.  In 1966, Partizan  reached the Final of the European Cup, where they lost to the Ye-Ye team of Real Madrid. He later played for Koln in Germany from 1966 to 1971, winning the German Cup in 1968.  He was capped by Yugoslavia for 50 times between 1959 and 1966.  He helped Yugoslavia to 4th place in the 1962 World Cup. He also won an Olympic Gold in 1960.

GK: Ilija Pantelić

Ater playing for BAK Bela Crkva and Radnički Sombor, Pantelić spent 9 seasons at Vojvodina between 1961 and 1969. In 1969, he joined Paris-Neuilly, before switching to Marseille. He also played for Bastia (1971–1974) and Paris Saint-Germain (1974–1977), amassing over 200 appearances in the top flight of French football.  He was capped 18 times for Yugoslavia from 1964 to 1968. He represented the country at Euro 1968, as Yugoslavia lost to Italy in the final.

RB: Branko Stanković
He is a Bosnian Serb. He was best remembered for his career with Red Star Belgrade, where he won 4 league titles and established himself as one of the best defender in Yugoslavian football history. He participated at two World Cups and twice at Olympic Games. Stanković is one of the most elegant defensive players of his time. Because of his playing style, he earned his nickname Ambassador. 

RB: Milutin Ivković 
Milutin Ivković played 39 times for Yugoslavia.  He played for them at 1928 Summer Olympics and FIFA World Cup 1930, where they reached the semifinal. He is considered the best rightback in Yugoslavian football history.  He obtained a medical degree in 1931 while serving as an active player.  During the War, he was an active in resistance movement. He was executed by firing squad in 1943.

CB: Nemanja Vidic
Nemanja Vidic spent 9 seasons as the starting center-back at Manchester United from 2006 and 2014, where he won every major trophy and established himself as one of the best center-backs of his generation.  He also played for Red Star Belgrade and Spartak Moscow.  He went to the World Cup Finals in 2006 and 2010. He was part of the "Famous Four" Serbian national team defense that conceded just one goal during the 2006 World Cup qualification campaign.

Nemnja Vidic

CB: Velibor Vasovic
He was a legend at FK Partizan.  He lost the European Cup to Real Madrid in 1966.  A year later, he later joined Ajax and established himself as one of the best defenders in Europe.  In 1971, he captained Ajax as they won their first European Cup, playing alongside Johan Cruyff.  He is considered one of the greatest Ajax defenders. He played 32 times for Yugoslavia.

CB: Miroslav Djukic
Miroslav Djukic spent 14 years of his professional career in Spain, notably at the service of Deportivo de La Coruña and Valencia, amassing La Liga totals of 368 games and 11 goals, and winning six major titles for the two clubs combined. In 1994, Đukić missed a penalty kick in the game's last minute (eventual 0–0 draw) for Deportivo. As a result FC Barcelona were crowned champions instead. He had 48 caps and  played at Euro 2000 for Yugoslavia.

CB/LB: Sinisa Mihajlovic 

Sinisa Mihajlovic was capped 63 times between 1991 and 2003 for Yugoslavia.  He won the European Cup with Red Star Belgrade. In 1992, he moved to Italy and became was one of the best defender in Serie, notably played for Roma, Sampdoria, Lazio and Inter Milan.  With Lazio, he won UEFA Cup Winners Cup: 1998–99. He was part of the golden generation of Yugoslav players who won the 1987 FIFA World Youth Championship in Chile.

Sinisa Mihajlovic

LB: Aleksandar Kolarov 
Aleksandar Kolarov began his career at Red Star Belgrade, but he moved onto Čukarički in 2004. Two years later, he joined OFK Beograd before signing for Lazio in Serie A. In 2010, he joined Manchester City, with which he won two Premier League titles, the FA Cup and the League Cup. He now plays for AS Roma in Italy. He has over 70 caps for Serbia. Kolarov was a member of Serbia's squads for the 2010 and 2018 World Cup Finals. He was named Serbian Player of the Year in 2011.

DM: Milorad Arsenijević
He earned 52 caps for the Yugoslavia, and played in the 1930 FIFA World Cup, where they reached the semifinal and served as the highest finishes for an European team.  He was born in Smederevo. However, he grew-up in Šabac where he started playing for the local team FK Mačva Šabac when he was 14.  In 1925, He joined BK Belgrade and retired there in 1938.

CM: Vladimir Jugovic
Jugovic was a member of Red Star Belgrade that won the European Cup in 1990.  He won another European Cup with Juventus in 1996. He also played for Sampdoria, Inter Milan, Atletico Madrid, Lazio, LR Ahlen, AS Monaco FC and VfB Admira Wacker Mödling. At the international level, he was limited to 41 caps because of the ban placed on Yugoslavia during the prime of his career. He played at Euro 2000 and the World Cup 1998 for Yugoslavia.  

Vladimir Jugovic

DM: Nemanja Matić  (Serbia)

Nemanja Matić began his career at Kolubara, before joining Slovak side Košice in 2007. He moved to Chelsea in 2009. With Benfica, he won the Primeira Liga Player of the Year award.  He returned to Chelsea in 2014. He was named in the PFA Team of the Year for the 2014–15 season. In 2017, he joined Manchester United. With Serbia, he has over 48 caps since 2008. He went to 2018 World Cup. He was the Serbian Player of the year twice.

CM/DM/RM: Dejan Stankovic
Dejan Stankovic played for Red Stars Belgrade and Lazio, but he is best remembered for his stint with Inter Milan where he won 5 league titles and one Champions League title.  He earned 103 international caps. He played in three World Cup Finals for three different national teams: Yugoslavia(1998), Serbia and Montenegro (2006) and Serbia (2010).  He captained the Serbia national team until 2011, when he announced his retirement from international football. 

Dejan Stankovic

RW:  Vujadin Boškov
Vujadin Boškov played with FK Vojvodina for most of his career (1946–1960). In 1961 he moved to Italy to play for Sampdoria for one season and then, joined Young Boys in Switzerland as a player/coach.  He also played for the Yugoslavia national team, and was part of the team that won the silver medal at the 1952 Olympic. Also he played at the 1954 and 1958 FIFA World Cups

RW: Aleksandar Tirnanić
Aleksandar Tirnanić played 50 times for the Kingdom of Yugoslavia between 1929 and 1940.  He went to the WC Finals in 1930, where he became among the youngest goal-scorer in history.  Tirnanić spent most of his senior club career with BSK Beograd for which he appeared in 500 matches. He later played for SK Jugoslavija, BASK, Jedinstvo  and Sloga .

LW: Dragan Dzajic

Dragan Džajić is viewed by some football experts as perhaps one of the most underrated players in European football, partly because he played in Yugoslavia. He is considered one of the greatest left wing in history of the game.  He played most of his career with Red Star Belgrade.  He was capped 85 times for Yugoslavia between 1964 and 1978.  He was voted the best player at European Championship in 1968, where Yugoslavia finished second behind Italy.

Dragan Dzajic

LW: Bora Kostić
Bora Kostić is the all-time leading scorer Red Star Belgrade,  During his club career, he played for Red Star Belgrade until 1961.  Then, he played for Lanerossi Vicenza in Italy and then, St. Louis Stars in the United States. Internationally, he earned 33 caps and 26 goals for the Yugoslavia, and participated in the 1960 European Nations' Cup. He won an Olympic Gold Medal in 1960.

AM: Dragan Stojkovic
Dragan Stojkovic is considered one of the best players in the history of Yugoslavian and Serbian football. He starred for Yugoslavia at the 1990 FIFA World Cup (where he was named in the World Cup All-Star Team) and 1998 FIFA World Cup where he captained the team. He was a star player at Red Star Belgrade, but he was playing for Marseille when Red Star Belgrade beat Marseille in the 1990 Final of the European Cup.  He played in Japan at the end of his career.

Dragan Stojkovic

ST/SS/LW: Milan Galic

He scored 37 international goals in 51 matches for Yugoslavia. He participated in the 1960 Summer Olympics, winning the gold medal, the 1960 UEFA European Football Championship, where Yugoslavia finished second and the 1962 FIFA World Cup, where Yugoslavia finished fourth. On the club level, he played for FK Partizan and Standard Liège.

ST/SS:  Rajko Mitic
Mitic started his career with BSK Belgrade. After the World War II, he was the captain of Red Star Belgrade when it was found in 1945.  He played 14 seasons there and was known for his leadership. He was considered one of the club's greatest players.  He won 59 caps (in which he was captain 34 times) for Yugoslavia, and scored 32 goals.

ST:  Blagojie Marjanovic 
Blagojie Marjanovic  played 57 times for the Kingdom of Yugoslavia.  He was one of the first superstars in Yugoslavia.  He played in the WC Finals of 1930, where Yugoslavia reached the semifinal before losing to host and eventual winner Uruguay.  He spent most of his career with BSK Belgrade. He was captured as a POW during the War.  He returned to football after the war.

ST/SS:  Miloš Milutinović
Miloš Milutinović was one of the Milutinović brothers who were famous players and coaches in Yugoslavia.  His was the brother of famous coach Bora Milutinović. At the international level, he earned 33 caps in total and represented the country in the 1954 and 1958 World Cups.  During his club career he played for FK Bor, FK Partizan, OFK Beograd, FC Bayern Munich, RCF Paris, and Stade Français Paris. 

Miloš Milutinović

Honorable Mention

Srđan Mrkušić, Ognjen Petrović, Dragan Pantelić, Petar Radenković

Vladimir Stojković, Vladimir Durković, Dejan Petkovic, Blagoje Paunović, Nenad Stojković, Goran Đorović, Vladimir Petrovic, Jovan Acimovic, Milinko Pantić, Milos Sestic, Jovan Acimovic, Savo Milosevic, Nemanja Matic, Branislav Ivanović,  Dejan Petkovic,  Ilija Petković, Milos Sestic, Đorđe Vujadinović, Dušan Tadić, Ivica Dragutinović, Mladen Krstajić, Darko Kovačević, Mateja Kežman, Savo Milošević.

Squad Explanation 

-- This edition of this team was reviewed on March, 2022.

-- All the players from Yugoslavia era were selected through ethnicity and birth place. The players after the collapse of Yugoslavia were based upon the national team they chose. All players who had represented the Serbian national team were eligible for this team. 

-- Vladimir Beara, Nemanja Vidic, Velibor Vasovic, Dragan Stojkovic and Dragan Dzajic were automatic selections.  They were Serbia's greatest ever players.

-- Nine players are on my Yugoslavia All-Time Team.  They are Branko Stankovic, Vladimir Beara, Milutin Soskic, Nemanja Vidic, Velibor Vasovic, Milutin Ivković, Dragan Stojkovic, Aleksandar Tirnanić and Dragan Dzajic.  They became the foundation of this team.

-- Sinisa Mihajlovic, and Vladimir Jugovic also helped Red Star Belgrade to win the 1991 European Cup.  Dejan Savićević was from Montenegro while Robert Prosinečki was from Croatia.  Darko Pančev came from Northern Macedonia.  Dragan Stojkovic was playing for Olympique de Marseille in the 1991 Final.  Stojković, a penalty kick specialist, entered the game late during the extra-time as a substitute, but as the match eventually went to a penalty shootout, he informed head coach Goethals that he did not want to take a penalty shot against his former team. Red Star won the European Cup in the shootout.

-- Serbia and Montenegro was still known as FR Yugoslavia at the 1998 World Cup Finals. Dejan Savićević and Predrag Mijatović are from Montenegro.  I put them on the all-time team for Montenegro.

-- Nemanja Vidic, Aleksandar Kolarov and Dejan Stankovic were the only players who had represented Serbia.  

-- Sinisa Mihajlovic, Vladimir Jugovic, Dragan Stojkovic and Miroslav Djukic were from the Golden Generation of the 1990's.  Dejan Stanković was still a youth player in 1992.  

-- The IFFHS created this All-Time Dream team for Serbia.  The players included were: Milutin Šoškić, Branko Stanković, Nemanja Vidić, Siniša Mihajlović, Fahrudin Jusufi, Vujadin Boškov, Dragan Stojković, Dragoslav Šekularac, Rajko Mitić and Milan Galić and Dragan Džajić. I decided not to choose Jusufi on this team due to the complexity of ethnic issue in this region.

Goalkeepers

-- Vladimir Beara was born in modern day Croatia, but he was of Serbian ethnicity.  The ethnic issue was very sensitive in the region.  He is chosen for both all time teams for Serbia and Croatia.  He was widely considered the greatest goalkeeper for Yugoslavia.  Then, I took Milutin Soskic.  Šoškić helped Yugoslavia to 4th place in the 1962 World Cup, and he also played for Partizan in the European Cup final against Real Madrid. Both names appeared almost everywhere in my research. The third goalkeeper went to Ilija Pantelić. He helped Yugoslavia to a second place finish at Euro 1968.  Srđan Mrkušić would have been my fourth choice because of his historical role in the region.

-- During his time at FK Vojvodina, Pantelić managed to score a hat-trick in a league game against Trešnjevka, as well as a goal against Atlético Madrid in the first leg of the 1966–67 European Cup second round. 

-- Ivan Ćurković was born in Mostar, Bosnia and Herzegovina.  From 1989 until 2006, Ćurković was president of FK Partizan. He was the president of the Serbian Olympic Committee until February 2009.  In 2009, he became the vice-president of the Serbian Football Association.  He was a Croat, but probably absorbed into the Serbian society.  Because ethnicity is a sensitive issue in the region, I decided to stick with birthplace and ethnicity for eligibility.  I have difficulties determining the nationality of players from the former Yugoslavia.  He probably would play for Serbia if he was born in the post-Yugoslavia era.  I ruled him ineligible.  

-- Ilija Pantelić was also born in Bosnia and Herzegovina.  However, he was a Serb, which made him eligible.  Curkovic is ahead of Pantelic on my Yugoslavia All-Time team.  

-- Ognjen Petrović, Dragan Pantelić and Petar Radenković were on honorable mentions.  Stevan Stojanović was never capped by Yugoslavia.  He was the hero of Red Star Belgrade's victory at the European Cup.

Defenders

-- Nemanja Vidic. Velibor Vasovic and Sinisa Mihajlovic were easy choices for central defenders.  Velibor Vasovic's career was defined by being a pioneer for Total Football when he played with Ajax.  He was credited for changing the way the sweeper position was played.  He is also one of the greatest European players in his position. Nemanja Vidic was the best Serbian player to emerge after the end of Yugoslavia.  In his prime, he was one of the best in Europe.

-- Siniša Mihajlović was born in Croatia, but his father was a Serb.  He also chose to represent FR Yugoslavia, which was considered to be the national team of Serbia and Montenegro.  He spent a long playing as a top defender in Serie A when the league was the best in the world.

-- The last central defender went to Miroslav Đukić who was considered one of Deportivo La Coruna's greatest central defenders. 

-- Branko Zebec mainly operated on the left flank.  He later played in the center of the midfield.  He was the top scorer at the 1952 Olympics, where Yugoslavia won the Silver.  The Mighty Magyars of Hungary won the Gold medal and became a legendary team in the history of the game.  He could also play as a central defender.

-- RB/CB: Branislav Ivanović was Serbia's all-time leading cap holders.  He deserved a place, but I picked Branko Stanković and Milutin Ivković.  They were considered Yugoslavia's greatest fullbacks.

-- Branko Stankovic is listed as a Bosnian Serb.  He was born in Sarajevo. Again, ethnicity is a serious issue in the region. He is on both of my all time team Serbia and Bosnia and Herzegovina.

-- Fahrudin Jusufi is sometimes listed on many Serbia All-Time list. He is definitely considered to be an all-timer.  However, due to the complexity and sensitivity of the ethnic issue in the region, I decided to leave him out.  He was born in Dragas, Kosovo.  His ethnicity is listed as Gorani.  I do not know if he was considered to be Serbian. Now, I listed him as a player from Kosovo.

-- Because of Mihajovic who could operate as a leftback, I only selected a single leftback Aleksandar Kolarov.  He was not on the original team.  In 2020,  I did a review of the team.  I decided to put leftback Aleksandar Kolarov on the team.  He had a lengthy career in the Preimership and Serie A.  Instead, I dropped Dejan Petkovic.  

Aleksandar Kolarov

Midfielders

-- Dragan Dzajic and Dragan Stojkovic took two of the spots in this section.  Džajić is considered one of the greatest left wing in history of the game. He is probably the greatest player from Yugoslavia before the breakup. And Dragan Stojkovic was probably the most famous player from the Golden Generation of the 1990's.  

-- Dragoslav Sekularac was often listed as a Serbian footballer. He made the Team of the Tournament in Euro 1960, where Yugoslavia finished second, and Yugoslavia also reached semifinal of the 1962 World Cup.  He was born in modern day Northern Macedonia to Montenegrin father and Macedonian mother.  He grew up in Belgrade, but I used ethnicity and birthplace for eligibility.  So he does not belong to this team.   In March, 2022, I discovered that Dragoslav Sekularac was a Serbian player by ethnicity.  I replaced him with Nemanja Matic. 

-- Vladimir Petrovic was well-known in England because he played for Arsenal at a time a few foreigners played in England.  He was a star in Yugoslavia, but his career in England was a flop.  Instead of taking him, I took Nemanja Matic.

-- On the original team, I did not select Nemanja Matic.  He proved himself in the Preimership, but I took Vladimir Jugovic who was a star in Italy during his prime.  I also took Dejan Stanković and Milorad Arsenijević.  

-- On my Yugoslavia after breakup team, I selected Nemanja Matic over Dejan Stanković and Vladimir Jugovic.  I considered both  Stanković and Jugovic to be a box-to-box midfielder.  On that team, I had too many offensive-minded midfielders.  Matic was badly needed over there. This team also needed him, but I had Milorad Arsenijević.  In the end, I discovered my mistake on Dragoslav Sekularac, and i found a spot of Matic.

-- Dejan Stanković is a member of Inter Milan Hall of Fame.  He contributed to Inter Milan winning the Champions' League in 2010.

-- Dušan Tadić is one of the most underrated playmaker in Europe, but he was also not going to get ahead of Dragoslav Sekularac and Dragan Stojkovic.

-- Dejan Petkovic was relatively unknown in Europe, but he accomplished something few footballers were able to achieve. He found stardom playing league football in Brazil.  When I started this blog team, I selected him for his cult status.  In 2020, I dropped him for Kolarov. Petkovic did not do as much for Serbia. He only played 8 times for Yugoslavia.

-- Although I already had Dragan Džajić, I still took Bora Kostić.  He is the all-time leading scorer for Red Star Belgrade.  On the right, I also took Vujadin Boškov who was one of the first Yugoslavian player to play in the West.

Bora Kostić

Forwards

-- Rajko Mitić is considered one of the most important players in the history of Red Star Belgrade as he is the first out of only five players to have been awarded the Zvezdina zvezda.  The principal stadium in Serbia was officially renamed after Rajko Mitic in 2014. He was a legend for Red Star Belgrade.

-- Milinko Pantić was a hero at Atletico de Madrid, mainly for winning the Double in the 1995-1996 season, but he had only a handful of caps.  I only put him on honorable mention.

-- ST/SS/LW: Milan Galic was the hero European Championship in 1960.  In total, he scored 37 goals for Yugoslavia in only 51 international matches, the most for a Serbian player, alongside Savo Milosevic. Milan Galić was one goal behind Stjepan Bobek.

-- Savo Milosevic is probably among the most famous Serbian attacker after the end of Yugoslavia, but it is hard for him to displace the older players.  So he only made honorable mention.

-- Đorđe Vujadinović was seriously considered. He helped Yugoslavia to  finish 4th place at the 1930 World Cup Finals.  Todor Veselinović scored 28 international goals with 37 caps.  He might be the best player not selected. Dragan Jovanović from the 1930's supposed to be very good as well.  I also looked into Milos Sestic.  In the end, I went with Miloš Milutinović and Blagojie Marjanovic.  They were frequently mentioned.

-- Blagoje Marjanović was one of the first player from Yugoslavia to turn professional.  Yugoslavia reached the semifinal of the 1930 World Cup Finals with him as a star player.   I also studied the case of Miloš Milutinović, but Marjanovic was a pioneer in this country. 

-- Miloš Milutinović was one of the Milutinović brothers. His brothers Bora and Milorad were also footballers.  Bora of course was the famous coach who led Costa Rica, Mexico, the United States, Nigeria and China at the World Cup Finals.

Starting lineup 
Formation I: 4-3-3

Formtion II: 4-2-3-1
This is a more defensive approach. I added Stankovic who is better defensively.