Milinkovic-Savic steals the show for Serbia
The player, born in Lleida, was the centre of attention in Serbia's match against Costa Rico and Real Madrid have asked about him already this summer
The match between Serbia and Costa Rica was just another example of how special a talent Sergej Milinkovic-Savic truly is. Not only that but his country, Serbia, could prove to be one of the dark horses in this World Cup.
The magical touch and wide range of passing abilities saw Milinkovic-Savic create plenty of chances for his teammates, most notably Fulham's Mitrovic, but the striker was unable to convert any of them.
Oscar Ramirez's side didn't look as dangerous as they did four years ago, losing that cutting edge in attack and being particularly vulnerable down the flanks. If it wasn't for Keylor Navas, the standout performer for the Costa Ricans, the scoreline could've been even greater.
Despite being flagged for offside it was Milinkovic-Savic who produced the moment of the first half when he directed an overhead kick goalwards. Navas had it covered but it's plain to see that the Serbian is full of confidence going into this tournament.
The man of the moment was actually born in Spain, in Lleida to be precise. He's the son of Nikola Milinkovic who played for Lleida, Almeria and Ourense. This summer, as revealed by SPORT, Real Madrid are keen on bringing him back to Spain but Lazio's €170m asking price is putting off anyone from making a bid for his services just yet. If he continues in the same vein that price tag might rise even further.
Aleksandar Kolarov scored the only goal of the game midway through the second half to hand Serbia all three points. Kolarov's freekick is a contender for goal of the tournament as his effort, from further out than Cristiano Ronaldo's versus Spain, curled over the wall and into the top corner beyond Navas' reach.
