Croatia coach Zlatko Dalic has indicated he
is having sleepless nights worrying about the tactical approach to enable
the Blazers to get something from their Group D
Russia 2018 World Cup first game against the Super Eagles at the
Kaliningrad Stadium in Kaliningrad on June 16.
Other occupants of the group are one of the
tournament’s favourites Argentina and dark horses Iceland.
Croatia, who battled to a third-place finish at
the France ’98 World Cup, boast some of the best midfielders in Europe in
Real Madrid star Luka Modric, Inter Milan’s Ivan Perisic, Inter Milan’s Marcelo
Brozovic and Barcelona’s Ivan Rakitic.
Despite the fact that his team are 33 places
higher than Nigeria in the latest FIFA rankings, Dalic believes the June 16
fixture against Eagles, not the June 21 clash against
two-time world champions Argentina at the Nizhny Novgorod Stadium in
Novgorod, is the fixture his team must play like a cup final.
The 51-year-old former Croatia Under-21 team’s
assistant manager told Pressing N1 TV on Tuesday that he was worried about
the Nigerian team loaded with young, talented and hungry players.
Dalic says he is not worried by Iceland’s
potential threat to Croatia’s second round qualification chances, saying the
Blazers will beat the small European nation in their last group
game.
He added, “Argentina is always Argentina, it will
be a real test. We have nothing to lose (if the South American powerhouse
defeat Croatia). I’m not afraid. Iceland cannot worry us, and I’m not
afraid of them.”
“I think Nigeria is not a typical African team.
They have no stars except Mikel (Obi). They will be dangerous, but
in the middle of the year we will study them well. The most important is the
first game, we need to prepare for it.”
Dalic said after the December 1 draw in
Moscow that the Blazers would play an African team as part of their
preparations for the World Cup.
He said, “We are starting with the analysis to be
ready for the World Cup, and the most important thing is for our players to be
healthy and true, and we will be looking for friendly rivals outside Europe,
from Africa, because we all know most about Europeans. Argentina, but our
strategy has to come down to strong rivals and strong matches.”
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