Petar Musa Explains his Surprise Croatia Call-Up, First International Goal & World Cup Dream

When FC Dallas’ 2025 season ended, Petar Musa boarded a flight home to Croatia anticipating a few weeks of much-needed rest and relaxation after a 19-goal campaign. But the day after he arrived, plans changed.

“I landed in Zagreb on Thursday and Friday I had a missed call. I was sleeping because of the jet lag and the seven-hour difference. So, I just see a missed call and messages. I woke up and my first reaction was, like, ‘Why’d they call me?’ And then I called back, and they said, ‘See you on Monday.’ And yeah, I was really happy, it was incredible, especially because I was not expecting it in that moment.”

The missed call was from the Croatia national team, inviting Musa to join the squad ahead of its final two World Cup qualifying matches. It was Musa’s first Croatia call-up in two years and it came as such a surprise that – with his usual gear still in Dallas – Musa had to scramble to find his old cleats and shin guards.

Everyone who's watched FC Dallas over the last two years were much less surprised. Musa has carried the team’s attack ever since his arrival from Benfica, scoring 36 goals in all competitions and setting club records along the way. If anything, this call-up had been a long time coming.

Musa’s first training session allowed him to catch up with the rest of his Croatian teammates – including Luka Modrić, a player he (and an entire generation of Croatians) drew inspiration from as a youngster.

“It was incredible, especially because many of the guys who are in the team now, we grew playing together and against each other, so we’ve known each other for a long time. The atmosphere in our national team is really like a family, you know. They all welcomed me back and it was an amazing feeling.”

Two days before the game, Croatia head coach Zlatko Dalić told Musa he was in line to make his first start for his country in the qualifier against the Faroe Islands. Croatia only needed a draw to book its place at the 2026 World Cup.

“We knew we needed just a point for the qualification. But we didn't want to just qualify. We wanted to win. We wanted to take three points because it was our last game at home, in front of our fans, and our families. I was really happy and not nervous at all. I just knew it was time to enjoy and show up.”

Musa did much more than that. With the scores even at 1-1, Musa connected with a cross from Bayern Munich’s Josip Stanišić, using one touch to control the ball before firing past the goalkeeper to give Croatia the lead. Musa’s first international goal was also the one that officially sent Croatia to its fourth consecutive World Cup.

Musa did his best to describe the emotions: “It was just crazy. In my mind, everything stopped. I was waiting for that moment. When I scored the goal, it's really hard to describe that feeling. It was happiness, proud, everything at once. It’s a feeling and a memory I’ll have for life.”

Croatia is currently ranked 10th in the world and has a talent pool deeper than most, so Musa faces stiff competition to remain in the squad come next summer’s tournament. But with his peerless consistency at FC Dallas and a qualifying goal now under his belt, his outlook has never looked better.

“Every season I want to start well with the team, focus on getting good results and performance with the club. I know that this will be very important for me to be there, because we have a lot of players in my national team who also play in very good leagues, and there are limited numbers of players who can go. So, I will just work and try to do better and improve on last year. I’ll work hard and have a faith that I will be there again and go on to the World Cup.”