(Photo credit: Nathan Ray Seebeck-Imagn Images)

ALEXANDRIA, Va. -- Thomas Tuchel's England World Cup squad selections caught much of the footballing world off guard.

That included Croatia defender Kristijan Jakic.

Asked on Thursday to size up his team's first Group L opponent after Croatia arrived at its World Cup base camp in the Washington suburbs, the 29-year-old FC Augsburg defender admitted he was among those who expected to see the likes of Phil Foden, Cole Palmer, Harry Maguire and Trent Alexander-Arnold in Tuchel's group.

'I was surprised by their final squad list because they were missing some players that maybe you would expect,' Jakic said in Croatian. 'But that also says a lot about their quality.'

Perhaps Tuchel is searching for the kind of tight bond that has characterized the Croatians over the past two World Cups.

After pulling off a shock run to the 2018 World Cup final, manager Zlatko Dalic's side nearly repeated the feat in 2022, reaching the semifinals. Among nations of their size (a population under 4 million), only Uruguay have ever done better at this tournament -- and its most recent World Cup triumph occurred 76 years ago.

While much of Croatia's success owes to generational talents such as Luka Modric, Ivan Perisic and Mateo Kovacic, the ethos of selflessness and sacrifice Dalic appears to have instilled adds another dimension.

Jakic, for example, despite moving from Dinamo Zagreb to Eintracht Frankfurt late in the 2021 summer transfer window and establishing himself as a Bundesliga regular, settled for a one-minute cameo in Croatia's 2-1 victory over Morocco in the 2022 third-place match as his only tournament appearance.

Some would've left Qatar feeling disappointed. He departed inspired.

'That minute was a highlight of my whole career, of my life,' Jakic said. 'I would lie to you if I didn't say that I expect or hope for a few more minutes than one minute. But I'll give my best to the team and I'll be very happy with every minute that I play for the Croatian team.'

This is a Croatian side that will need more help from its supporting cast than previous iterations, even if the aging core of its golden generation is still present, led by the 40-year-old Modric.

This is particularly true at center forward, where it's still unclear whether Igor Matanovic, Petar Musa or Ante Budimir will get the majority of the minutes.

'I'm not coming here with any particular expectations,' said the 23-year-old Matanovic, another Bundesliga player who scored 11 league goals for Freiburg this season. 'I had a really good season in my club. But whoever plays, Budimir, Musa or myself, we are all ready.'

Musa has the advantage of playing on familiar terrain, with the first match on June 17 in Arlington, Texas, a short drive from where he plays for FC Dallas in MLS.

Matanovic, however, has the advantage of recently facing English Premier League opposition in Freiburg's 3-0 loss to Aston Villa in the UEFA Europa League final on May 20. He may well again come up against England's Ezri Konsa, who started at center back for Aston Villa in that match.

'That was my first game against a Premier League club,' Matanovic said. 'I felt like it's a different (kind of) football. Very strong. Very tough. Also good on the ball as well. So we expect a tough game. But I'll be ready, just as my team will as well.'

--Ian Quillen, Field Level Media