Croatia 2004–06 Home Shirt — Nike — Medium

There are football shirts that quietly represent their country, and then there’s Croatia.

The red-and-white checks have been doing most of the heavy lifting since independence, and by 2004 Nike had turned them into this gloriously unsubtle number. Checks across the front, big blocks of blue down the sides and enough going on that absolutely nobody is mistaking you for Switzerland.

This was Croatia’s home shirt for Euro 2004, where they landed in a group with England, France and Switzerland. Not exactly the easiest summer holiday they’ve ever had.

It’s a proper mid-2000s Nike shirt too: embroidered Swoosh, stitched Croatia crest, lightweight mesh construction and made in Portugal. No name or number on the back, so you’re spared having to explain an obscure 2004 Croatian midfielder to everyone you meet.

Nike | Croatia | 2004–06 | Home | Size M

It’s in good used condition for a shirt that’s now over 20 years old. There’s a small mark which I’ve photographed properly rather than pretending it doesn’t exist. Otherwise, have a good look through the photos — what you see is what you’re getting.

A cracking bit of early-2000s international football, from the period when kits still looked like kits rather than compression tops covered in cryptocurrency sponsors.