Why isn’t Josko Gvardiol starting for Croatia against Portugal at the 2026 World Cup?

Croatia take on Portugal in the Round of 32 of the 2026 World Cup at Toronto Stadium, and manager Zlatko Dalic has once again decided to leave Josko Gvardiol out of his starting eleven.

Dalic is opting to keep the same backline that finished the game against Ghana, meaning Gvardiol will start the match from the bench once more as he was replaced during the halftime.

The Manchester City defender occupied the left side of Croatia‘s backline whenever he did play. However, for this crucial match, the coach opted to push Ivan Perisic back into a defensive role, having him cover the left side.

Gvardiol lost his place among the starters

The 24-year-old defender saw his performances decline throughout the 2026 World Cup, which led to him not starting this crucial match against Portugal as Croatia look to secure a place in the Round of 16.

Gvardiol began the tournament as the starting left-back, in the 4-2 defeat to England, where his performance failed to fully convince Dalic. In Matchday 2 against Panama, he started again, but the coach opted to pull him at halftime to bring on more attacking players, pushing Perisic back into the left-back role.

By the decisive Matchday 3 against Ghana, the coach went a step further, starting Perisic outright at left-back and only bringing Gvardiol on for the final three minutes of the match — making it clear his starting spot had been lost.