Kovačević trims Dinamo's squad for Slovenia: the absence of Mmaee and Čavlina raises questions about their future at Maksimir
Mario Kovačević has begun the key phase of shaping Dinamo's team for the new season, and the list of passengers for the central part of the preparations in Slovenia shows that some decisions are no longer being postponed. According to the available list for the trip to Brdo near Kranj, the group that the coach has taken to the main part of the preparation cycle does not include Samy Mmaee or Nikola Čavlina. Such a choice is not merely a technical adjustment of the squad, but a clear sporting message to two players whose status at Maksimir has for some time already been interpreted as an open question. Dinamo is heading to Slovenia in a period in which the coach must quickly determine the hierarchy, while the sporting leadership must simultaneously assess who realistically fits into the plan for the European qualifiers and the domestic season. In such a context, absence from preparations often carries more weight than the mere fact that a player is not on the bus, because it is precisely during preparations that automatisms, relationships in the dressing room and the first outlines of the team for competitive matches are defined.
Brdo near Kranj as the first serious filter
According to earlier information from Sportske novosti about Dinamo's preparation plan, after gathering in Zagreb the team was supposed to move on 22 June 2026 to Brdo near Kranj, a traditional preparation base in Slovenia. The same source stated that in the Slovenian part of the preparations, test matches against Radomlje and Bravo were planned, while after returning to Zagreb additional matches were expected to follow, among them a final rehearsal against Turkey's Göztepe if the agreement is finally confirmed. Such a schedule gives Kovačević a relatively narrow time frame for assessing the squad, because Dinamo is not preparing only for the start of the league competition, but also for the European qualifying cycle. In a preparation camp, coaches usually do not look only for physical fitness, but also for confirmation that a player fits into the model of play, the training rhythm and the demands brought by a larger number of matches in a short period. That is why the list for Slovenia carries the weight of the first serious filter, especially for players returning from loans or entering the season without a clear role.
Dinamo is not travelling to Brdo near Kranj in a sporting vacuum. According to a 24sata report from the beginning of preparations, Kovačević emphasized that the team must immediately start seriously because there is not much time until the first European matches. In the same statement, he spoke about the need to upgrade the team, but also about the fact that the club must not relax after a successful previous season. This is important for understanding the current trimming of the squad: a coach who must quickly prepare the team for the qualifiers can hardly keep a large number of players without a clear perspective. In such circumstances, every place at preparations has a function, and the absence of a player who is formally under contract with the club raises the question of whether a new loan, transfer, termination or a different solution will be sought for him.
Mmaee remains the most sensitive case in the back line
Samy Mmaee arrived at Dinamo as a player with international experience and the reputation of a centre-back who can bring solidity, but his stay in Zagreb did not develop in a direction that would justify the initial expectations. According to an earlier report by tportal, the club was already not seriously counting on Mmaee last summer, and a solution was being sought for him on the market after he was not in the forefront of the coaching staff's plans. The same outlet then stated that Mmaee had played 21 matches for Dinamo and scored one goal, noting that in the closing stages of the league season he had very limited minutes. At the time of checking, the specialized database Transfermarkt listed him as a Qarabağ player on loan from Dinamo until 30 June 2026, with a contract with Dinamo until 30 June 2028. Such information further explains why his status is being monitored cautiously: even when a player returns from a loan arrangement, that does not automatically mean that he is re-entering the sporting plan of the first team.
Mmaee's absence from the list for Slovenia can therefore be read as a continuation of the line that was formed already in previous transfer periods. If the coach does not want to spend the key days of preparations on a player for whom he does not see a clear role, the club receives an early enough message that it must find a solution on the market. This is especially important in defence, where communication between centre-backs, full-backs and goalkeepers is built during preparations, and later changes can be costly in European matches. By profile, Mmaee is a player who could theoretically help with experience, but the current signal from the passenger list says that his future at Maksimir is not tied to Kovačević's basic plan. Since the club has not publicly announced a final decision on his status, the most precise thing to say is that his stay in the competitive squad is highly uncertain, while any outgoing transfer or new loan arrangement still needs official confirmation.
Čavlina left without room in a crowded goalkeeping department
Nikola Čavlina is the second significant message from the passenger list, and that is because of the specific nature of the goalkeeper position. According to available information, the young goalkeeper remained outside the combinations for the Slovenian part of the preparations at the last moment, which in practice signals that Kovačević currently does not see him as part of the narrower circle for the start of the season. At the time of checking, Transfermarkt listed him as a Como goalkeeper on loan from Dinamo until 30 June 2026, with Dinamo's contract running until 30 June 2028. Dinamo's official website, in the section with the first-team list for the 2025/2026 season, lists Danijel Zagorac, Ivan Nevistić, Dominik Livaković and Ivan Filipović among the goalkeepers, while Čavlina is not listed there. Such an arrangement of names indicates that the goalkeeping order has already been formed around other options, at least at this stage of preparations.
For a goalkeeper, absence from preparations is especially sensitive because the hierarchy in that position is usually established earlier than in the outfield. Clubs can rotate wingers, midfielders or full-backs through several preparation matches, but the goalkeeper position requires a clear decision on the first choice, the backup and development options. Čavlina has already gone through loan processes in his career and is not a player without market value, but a return to Dinamo always entails a battle with strong competition and with the expectation that every goalkeeper can immediately fit into the specific pressure of Maksimir. If he is not in the group going through the main preparation block, it is realistic to expect the club to consider a model for him that ensures minutes. That can be a new loan, a transfer or a different agreement, but without an official announcement it cannot be claimed that the decision is final.
Kovačević is looking for a functional squad, not merely a large one
Kovačević's approach to the list for Slovenia fits into the logic of a coach who wants a functional squad, not a broad group in which some players have no clear role. According to information from 24sata from the start of preparations, the coach pointed out that the goal is qualification for the league phase of the Champions League and that Dinamo must not fear opponents, but also that the team must be upgraded. This means that preparations are not only a physical introduction to the season, but also a selection process in which it is assessed who can immediately respond to the European rhythm. UEFA has announced that the qualifiers for the 2026/2027 Champions League begin in July, and in the second qualifying round Dinamo was drawn against Switzerland's Thun. According to UEFA's calendar, the first matches of the second qualifying round are played on 21 and 22 July 2026, and the return legs on 28 and 29 July 2026. Dinamo's staff therefore does not have the luxury of long experimentation, because competitive pressure will appear before the domestic league enters full rhythm.
Such a schedule explains why the coach must work in Slovenia with players who are in his immediate plan. The preparation matches against Slovenian opponents should show the initial level of aggression, compactness and automatisms in the attacking phase, but also help distribute minutes among the players competing for the European squad list. In that sense, the list for Brdo near Kranj is not only an internal document, but the first concrete map of priorities. Players who are not there may still have a contract, market value and a professional future, but their future is probably separating from the main competitive plan. In the cases of Mmaee and Čavlina this is especially visible because these are not anonymous names, but players who have already been part of Dinamo's broader squad picture.
Dinamo's broader calendar is also in the background
Dinamo's summer schedule further increases the importance of every squad decision. The Croatian Football Federation states in the official SuperSport HNL schedule that Dinamo opens the 2026/2027 season on 1 August 2026 with a home match against Slaven Belupo at Maksimir Stadium. This means that within a few weeks the club will have to combine European qualifiers, the end of preparations and entry into the league. Such a calendar usually reduces the space for players whose status is unclear, because the coach must focus on those who can carry matches immediately from the first round. For a club that at the same time wants a result in Europe and a stable domestic start, early squad selection is not a matter of discipline, but a necessity.
That is precisely why the absence of Mmaee and Čavlina has a meaning that goes beyond the personal careers of the two players. Dinamo must align financial, sporting and developmental interests, and every player who is not in the plan raises the question of salary, contract duration and the possibility of a market solution. In Mmaee's case, the emphasis is on finding a way out of a situation in which the player has experience, but not a clear sporting perspective in Kovačević's system. In Čavlina's case, the key need is minutes, because a goalkeeper of his age can hardly progress if he remains the third or fourth option. In both cases the club must avoid the status quo: a player who is not in the plan and remains without competitive rhythm loses value, while the coach loses space to work with those who will truly carry the season.
A message to the dressing room before the European matches
Kovačević's move also sends a message to the rest of the dressing room. It is not only the biggest names who travel to preparations, but those whom the coach wants to test in a concrete model of play and prepare for official matches within a short timeframe. That is an important signal in a club where the pressure of results is constantly present, and competition for places in the team is regularly high. If the coach already at the start of the central part of preparations shows that he will not keep players outside the plan merely for the sake of squad depth, then those who have travelled to Slovenia also know that their status will be measured by every training session and every preparation minute. In such an atmosphere, the passenger list becomes a means of managing expectations, not just a logistical list.
Dinamo's situation ahead of the 2026/2027 season can therefore be reduced to several parallel processes. The team must physically catch its rhythm after the break, the coach must determine the backbone for Thun and the domestic championship, and the club leadership must resolve the players who do not enter the narrower plan. Mmaee and Čavlina are currently the most visible examples of that selection, but such a process usually continues throughout the summer. The future of both will depend on the club's official decisions, the interest of other environments and the assessment of whether Dinamo can still use them sporting-wise or financially. Until then, their absence from the Slovenian group remains the clearest indicator that Kovačević is building the team according to his own criteria and that in that process not every familiar name will automatically receive a new chance.
Sources:
- GNK Dinamo – official first-team list and goalkeeping options in the 2025/2026 season (link)
- Sportske novosti – information about Dinamo's gathering, departure to Brdo near Kranj and planned preparation matches (link)
- 24sata – statements by Mario Kovačević about the start of preparations, goals and the European rhythm (link)
- UEFA – official calendar and fixtures of the 2026/2027 Champions League qualifiers, including the tie Thun - GNK Dinamo (link)
- Croatian Football Federation – official SuperSport HNL 2026/2027 schedule and the Dinamo - Slaven Belupo match in the 1st round (link)
- Transfermarkt – status of Samy Mmaee as a Qarabağ player on loan from Dinamo until 30 June 2026 (link)
- Transfermarkt – status of Nikola Čavlina as a Como goalkeeper on loan from Dinamo until 30 June 2026 (link)
- tportal – earlier context about Mmaee's status at Dinamo and the search for a market solution (link)