Despite coming into the World Cup as a relative unknown, Croatia’s Ante Rebic has already staked his claim as one of the potential young stars of the tournament after a promising cameo appearance against Brazil.
After stepping off the bench to replace Nikica Jelavic in the 78th minute of Croatia’s unfortunate 3-1 defeat on opening night, the 20-year-old winger looked assured beyond his years and will have impressed many on looking fans and scouts alike.
However, after coming on at the expense of the vastly more experienced Eduardo, his selection still raised a few eyebrows and, with the alternative being the proven quality that his 31-year-old colleague has to offer, it is easy to see why.
Without the justification that Rebic’s performance brought about, the Fiorentina youngster was undoubtedly a surprise inclusion in the 23-man squad in the first place after making just four Serie A appearances last season, amounting to the grand total of just 172 minutes of action.
Investigating a little further into the matter though, and it all starts to make much more sense.
Above all, it is hard to overlook the fact that Croatia coach Niko Kovac is a huge fan of Rebic. After coaching the starlet at Under-21 level and he has always believed in the youngsters’ potential, giving him opportunities to prove himself whenever possible.
Equally noteworthy is the fact that while there is an embarrassment of riches in central areas in the Croatia squad – with the likes of Luka Modric, Ivan Rakitic and Mateo Kovacic fixtures in the first-team – there is no real natural supply of talent out wide.
With their 4-2-3-1 system necessitating attacking wingers, Ivan Perisic remains the squad’s only out-and-out wide-man and, while Ivica Olic was excellent on the left flank against the Brazilians, Rebic is one of the few players to naturally play with the kind of width and drive that Croatia crave, and something that was particularly useful against the Selecao side known for their attack-minded full-backs.
While Eduardo can himself play out wide, his propensity for playing through the centre runs the risk of adding yet another creative player to an already well-stocked unit.
Looking ahead, in a World Cup that has so far been characterised by fast, counter-attacking football, the injection of pace that Rebic offers adds another string to his bow. Coming on against tiring defenders late in matches, the young winger offers pace and directness that is in short supply in the Croatia squad and he could well keep Eduardo warming the bench for the remainder of the campaign.
Ultimately, while many would value experience over the uncertainty an unproven youngster can bring to a side, few would argue against the devastating effect that their exuberance can have in the correct dosage.
Now, with Rebic having shown (albeit briefly) that he is capable of producing at the highest level, even fewer would argue that Kovac’s decision to bring on the exciting youngster was anything other than a positive one.
