Croatia vs England star is married to gorgeous blonde dubbed her nation’s Shakira
England travel to face Croatia in the Nations League on Saturday evening and one of the host nation’s WAGs has been dubbed her country’s answer to Shakira. The Three Lions are looking to score their second victory over Croatia this year after beating them in the World Cup group stage this summer.
The players out for revenge include Manchester City’s Mateo Kovacic, who is married to former supermodel and businesswoman, Izabel.
She started dating the midfielder, 32, in 2010 and has followed him all around Europe on his football journey. He featured for clubs such as Inter Milan and Real Madrid before moving to the Premier League with Chelsea in 2018, joining City in 2023.
Izabel Kovacic is a big hit on Instagram(Image: @izakova/Instagram)
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Kovacic tied the knot with his wife in June 2017 in a luxurious ceremony held in Zagreb, the Croatian capital, and in the same church where they met.
It was attended by 600 guests, including fellow Croatia international Ivan Perisic.
During Kovacic’s time in Spain, Izabel became a media darling and was frequently seen cheering him on in the stands.
Izabel Kovacic founded her own fashion brand(Image: @izakova/Instagram)
Kovacic and Izabel are Croatia’s golden couple(Image:
INSTAGRAM
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She was even dubbed a “Shakira-lookalike” by the Spanish press for her long, blonde, curly hair.
Izabel is a bit of a hit on Instagram with almost 30,000 people following her latest account, where she shares photos of her business.
She co-founded an eco-friendly organic baby products brand, Lunilou, in 2015 and also launched her own sustainable luxury fashion line, IZAKOVA, which has 395,000 followers on the app.
She was referred to as a Shakira lookalike in Spain (Image: Izabel Andrijanic/Instagram )
The gorgeous Izabel Andrijanic often watches her man Mateo Kovacic from the stands (Image:
Instagram
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The couple have two children together: Ivan, born in 2020, and Luna, born in 2025.
After his two-goal heroics in City’s 3-2 thriller against Fulham in 2024, Kovacic dedicated his performance to Izabel. He said: “It means a lot because my wife is pregnant, so it was great to get some goals for the little one.”
As for matters on the pitch, it’s been reported that Kovacic is keen to leave City in the January transfer window.
He had been a regular fixture in the starting XI, but an ankle injury saw him limited to nine appearances last season.
Kovacic returned to action for the World Cup this summer and has featured five times so far this campaign for City.
The deadline day acquisition of Enzo Fernandez from Chelsea reportedly prompted him to attempt a late exit, however.
It’s reported that he had opportunities in Turkey, Saudi Arabia, and Italy, but a transfer failed to materialise.
Speaking during pre-season, City boss Enzo Maresca said: “Mateo is our player, so while he is here I will do my best.
“If Mateo is here, we will continue to work with him. It is my duty to make players better.”
