Mandzukic will have to sit out the World Cup

ZAGREB, Croatia -- Luka Modric and Mario Mandzukic were included in Croatias experienced 30-man provisional squad for the World Cup on Wednesday. The skilful Real Madrid midfielder, with 73 appearances for Croatia, and the prolific Bayern Munich striker, with 54 caps, are expected to form the spine of countrys team at the World Cup, where it will play host Brazil, Mexico and Cameroon in Group A. However, Mandzukic will have to sit out the World Cup opener against Brazil on June 12 in Sao Paulo because of his expulsion during Croatias playoff match against Iceland. Also included in the provisional squad are defender Darijo Srna and Brazilian-born striker Eduardo of Shakhtar Donetsk, midfielders Ivan Rakitic of Sevilla and Niko Kranjcar of Queens Park Rangers, and strikers Ivica Olic of Wolfsburg and Nikica Jelavic of Hull. In 1998, Croatia -- still recovering from a bloody civil war in the Balkans in the early 1990s -- finished third in its maiden World Cup. Since then, the team from a nation of 4.3 million people qualified for three out of four World Cups. Now, the Croats believe they can finish at least second in their group after the highly favoured hosts, and progress to the knockout stage. "Well try our best in Brazil, but the earth wont stop turning if we fail," Croatia coach Niko Kovac said Wednesday while announcing the squad which will be reduced to 23 players on May 31. "There will always be disappointed players, but thats how it goes," the German-born former Croatia midfielder said. "I was not in the team for the 1998 World Cup, but still managed to play at many big events after that." Defender Josip Simunic had to be omitted from the squad after he lost his appeal at the Court of Arbitration for Sport on Monday, ruling him out of the World Cup for leading fans in a pro-Nazi chant after the playoff win. "Simunic will unfortunately not be with us in Brazil," Kovac said. "We are friends and Im sad." ------ Squad: Goalkeepers: Stipe Pletikosa (Rostov), Danijel Subasic (Monaco), Oliver Zelenika (Dinamo Zagreb) Defenders: Darijo Srna (Shakhtar Donetsk), Dejan Lovren (Southampton), Vedran Corluka (Lokomotiv Moscow), Gordon Schildenfeld (Panathinaikos), Danijel Pranjic (Panathinaikos), Ivan Strinic (Dnipro Dnipropetrovsk), Domagoj Vida (Dynamo Kyiv), Sime Vrsaljko (Genoa), Igor Bubnjic (Udinese) Midfielders: Luka Modric (Real Madrid), Ivan Rakitic (Sevilla), Niko Kranjcar (Queens Park Rangers), Ognjen Vukojevic (Dynamo Kyiv), Ivan Perisic (Wolfsburg), Mateo Kovacic (Inter Milan), Milan Badelj (Hamburg), Ivo Ilicevic (Hamburg), Marcelo Brozovic (Dinamo Zagreb), Ivan Mocinic (Rijeka), Mario Pasalic (Hajduk Split), Sammir (Getafe) Forwards: Mario Mandzukic (Bayern Munich), Ivica Olic (Wolfsburg), Eduardo da Silva (Shakhtar Donetsk), Nikica Jelavic (Hull), Ante Rebic (Fiorentina), Duje Cop (Dinamo Zagreb) Connor Brown Jersey .Bacca took advantage of Cristian Alvarezs hesitation to head a lobbed pass over the goalkeeper and then used his feet to roll the ball into an empty net in the eighth minute. 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Kalla was 1.8 seconds back. Heidi Weng of Norway took bronze.MINNEAPOLIS - The NFL has asked a federal court to reject the petition by the NFL Players Association on behalf of Adrian Peterson to have the star running backs suspension overturned.Attorneys for the league, in a 35-page filing Friday, wrote that U.S. labour law should prevent the court from handling a dispute already ruled on by the arbitrator for Petersons appeal.The NFL argued that the NFLPAs 74-page petition, filed Dec. 15, amounted to nothing more than a transparent effort to re-litigate all of the issues previously decided on by arbitrator Harold Henderson. Commissioner Roger Goodell, through the collective bargaining agreement between the two parties, has the power of discipline, the league wrote.The hearing is scheduled for Feb. 6 in front of U.S. District Judge David Doty. The NFL suspended Peterson through at least April 15 for the child-abuse case he was involved in, and Petersons appeal was denied by Henderson, a former a league official.The union accused Henderson of bias in the petition, but the NFLs lawyers wrote that actual prejudice couldnt be demonstrated.And evident partiality cannot serve as a basis for vacating an award, the league said.The NFL also argued that, because Henderson ordered executive Troy Vincent to testify over the leagues objection, the long-time arbitrator was not favouring the NFL in his decision.Peterson missed all but one game this season, serving paid leave on a special exempt liist before the six-game suspension without pay was enacted.dddddddddddd.The union, in the petition, said Henderson ran roughshod over the required procedural protections of the CBA and summarily rubber-stamped the unlawful process and punishment of Mr. Peterson with his ruling. Part of the NFLPAs argument against the suspension was fundamental unfairness, citing the enhanced domestic violence policy that took effect in August, more than three months after the injuries occurred to Petersons 4-year-old son. The union accused Goodell of punishing Peterson to satiate public calls for his resignation due to prior disciplinary failures and said he picked Henderson to hear the appeal to to avoid another embarrassing reversal of his decision.But the NFL, in the filing Friday, said the issue of fundamental fairness has never been recognized as a basis for vacating an arbitration award in the federal court system.Peterson will turn 30 in march. His contract calls for a $12.75 million salary in 2015 with a hit to the teams salary cap of $15.4 million, putting his status with the Vikings in question. General manager Rick Spielman, head coach Mike Zimmer and several teammates have said they support Peterson and would welcome his return. But Spielman sidestepped questions this week about whether the Vikings can afford to keep him on the roster.___AP NFL websites: http://www.pro32.ap.org and http://www.twitter.com/AP_NFL ' ' '