The incident happened in the closing minutes of Saturday's World Cup Group D match against Nigeria, which Croatia won 2-0.

According to the Croatian daily 24sata, Kalinic was meant to replace Mario Mandzukic but said he had issues with his back and refused to play.

The head coach said at the post match press conference that the team had finished the game without injuries, but "with a problem." However, he is yet to confirm his decision, with a press conference scheduled later on Monday.

Croatia will next face Argentina on Thursday and Iceland on June 26.