Mario Mandžukić

Mario Mandžukić is the all-time leading goalscorer for the Croatian national team and one of the most complete center forwards in European football during the 2000s and 2010s. Born in Slavonski Brod, in what was then Yugoslavia, he stood out for his physical strength, aerial ability, commitment to teamwork, and goal-scoring instinct. He played for the biggest European clubs — Bayern Munich, Atlético Madrid, and Juventus — winning titles at every stop. With Bayern, he was champion of the Champions League in 2013. At Juventus, he accumulated multiple Serie A titles and participated in two Champions League finals. His name became marked forever in the 2018 World Cup. In the final against France, Mandžukić scored an own goal early in the match, but he also found the back of the French net to put Croatia ahead 2-1, before France won 4-2 and claimed the title. He retired from professional football in 2021, ending a victorious career that inscribed him definitively among the great strikers of his generation.