Ivo Grbić seals third place at World Cup with Croatia

Atlético Madrid goalkeeper Ivo Grbić has finished third at the 2022 FIFA World Cup.

Croatia got their hands on the bronze medal after a 2-1 win over Morocco in the third-place play-off. The shotstopper did not make it off the bench for Zlatko Dalić’s team at the tournament and did not add to his two international caps from November 2021, instead providing back-up for Dinamo Zagreb goalkeeper Dominik Livaković.

Grbić was one of three LaLiga players in the Croatian squad, alongside Real Madrid midfielder Luka Modrić and Osasuna forward Ante Budimir.

It means he is the first current Atlético player ever to win the accolade. In today’s squad, Axel Witsel and Yannick Carrasco both won the bronze medal with Belgium in Russia in 2018, but they were plying their trades in China at the time.

More medals to come back to the Metropolitano

Atlético Madrid will also have players in both first and second position as Rodrigo de Paul, Nahuel Molina and Ángel Correa will represent Argentina while Antoine Griezmann will face them for France in Sunday’s World Cup final.

That guarantees there will be more Atleti players in the final than any other club in world football, while there will also be a World Cup-winning in the squad for the second consecutive tournament.

Photo by Quality Sport Images/Getty Images

In Russia four years ago, Griezmann and Lucas Hernández represented Atleti at the time of getting their hands on the trophy, while Thomas Lemar joined the club later that summer. In the final at Luzhniki Stadium, they saw off another Atleti player, Šime Vrsaljko, who was playing for their final rivals, Croatia.

Given the trio of Rojiblancos currently playing with Argentina, Atlético could repeat that feat of having three players on the winning side on Sunday.

Other former Atleti players to have won the greatest prize in football include Fernando Torres and David Villa with Spain in 2010, Ubaldo Fillol with Argentina in 1978 and Edvaldo Vavá with Brazil in 1958.