Luka Vušković has told his agent to stop all talks about his future until after Croatia’s World Cup campaign, putting his club decisions on hold just as interest in the 19-year-old centre-back is building. The Tottenham defender wants nothing to distract him from his first World Cup with Croatia this summer.
That is why his name is being searched now. Croatian media reported that any negotiations should be halted immediately and postponed until the tournament is over, with Vušković set to focus on international duty rather than the market around him. He has been called up for Croatia and could even feature in Tuesday’s warm-up match against Belgium in his homeland, a game that would arrive with transfer noise waiting in the background.
The pause does not mean the noise has gone away. Vušković has been linked with Barcelona, Bayern Munich and PSG after a strong 12 months on loan at Hamburger SV, where he helped them stay up and earned a place in the Bundesliga Team of the Season. Tottenham hold him under contract until 2030, which gives the club leverage and also means any serious move is likely to be shaped by the scale of the offers that follow him now.
There is also a personal thread running through the football. Last week, Vušković said playing with his brother at HSV would be a dream and a dream come true, but he added that it is “hardly possible” and, in his words, “impossible.” He was equally warm about Roberto De Zerbi, calling him a top-class coach who likes attacking football and build-up play, and said he hoped they would work well together in the future. Those remarks have only fed the sense that his next step remains open, even if he wants the conversation delayed.
That is where the friction sits: Vušković wants silence until the World Cup is over, but interest from Europe’s biggest clubs does not pause just because a player asks it to. Tottenham could also be tempted to reward his rising status with a bigger contract, and the long deal already in place means any suitor will have to deal with the club as much as the player. For now, though, Vušković appears determined to travel with Croatia first and sort the rest out only after the tournament in America.
