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The talented Tottenham teenager reached another milestone in his remarkable start to football life on Thursday night on the international stage
A 'great career' lies ahead for Tottenham starlet Luka Vuskovic after he scored his first senior international goal for Croatia on Thursday night to help them beat Columbia in a friendly in the USA.
The 19-year-old is quickly becoming a rising star in the game despite the fact that he is yet to make a competitive appearance for Premier League side Spurs. Instead the big centre-back has been starring in the Bundesliga for Hamburg and that has brought transfer links with the likes of Barcelona, Bayern Munich and plenty of the Premier League big boys in recent months.
Now Vuskovic, who has a contract at Tottenham until 2030, has taken his season to the next level after he scored his first international goal for Croatia on his third appearance for his country.
The young defender has an eye for goal and scored seven times on loan at Belgian side Westerlo last season, then netted in pre-season for Spurs and has hit the back of the net five times already for Hamburg in the Bundesliga.
On Thursday night, just five minutes into the friendly against Colombia at the Camping World Stadium in Orlando, Vuskovic levelled the scores after Jhon Arias' early goal with a deflected finish of his own from outside the box that flew into the net. Igor Matanovic scored a second goal for the away side before the break to ensure the young defender had played his part in the victory.
After the game Vuskovic posted on Instagram: "I am very proud to have scored my first goal for the national team and contributed to an important victory."
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It wasn't just his goal that stood out on the night as Vuskovic had 63 touches of the ball, a 96% pass success rate and 13 defensive contributions, including nine clearances, two blocks and two interceptions. He made three ball recoveries and was not dribbled past even once.
Croatia boss Zlatko Dalic said of the centre-back's performance: "He played well and with quality, which is why we played that system with three at the back.
"He maybe needs to be a bit more decisive and responsible, but he’s growing. He will certainly have a great career.
"In the last 15 minutes, we switched to four at the back, which he can play. He played well, like everyone else, I wouldn’t single anyone out. Many good things."
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