SUPER MARIO OUT TO SHOOT DOWN JORDAN
MARIO MANDZUKIC claims Croatia can spring a surprise on England hero Jordan Pickford.
The Everton goalkeeper has been the star of the show for the Three Lions, saving a penalty in the shoot-out win over Colombia and making three superb stops against Sweden in the quarter-finals.
Juventus striker Mandzukic is a big Pickford fan but insists his team have what it takes to beat the England No.1 and make it to their first-ever World Cup Final.
He said: “We’ve seen throughout the games that he is doing really well but we have shown throughout the tournament that all of our players are dangerous.
“He shows great potential and I am sure he has a bright future. But I am sure one of us will find a way to surprise him.”
Mandzukic insists Croatia feel no pressure ahead of the biggest game of their lives and scoffs at talk they might be tired after from PAUL BROWN in St Petersburg
back-to-back penalty shoot-out wins over Denmark and Russia.
He said: “Tired? Everybody is ready, you will see that in the match. We have waited years to do something great.
“We are so close and we will leave every drop of sweat on the pitch in order to achieve our goal. We respect England a lot. It’s going to be a tough game, 50/50.
“England deserves to be here but we deserve to be here too. Our biggest pressure was the game against Denmark.
“At this point we’re enjoying what’s happening.”
Croatia’s biggest star is Luka Modric, already a Champions League winner with Real Madrid this season, and Mandzukic believes the former Tottenham playmaker is in with a shout of winning the Golden Ball for player of the tournament.
He said: “I have known Luka for a number of years. We played club football as well. He is one of the best. He deserves all the accolades he gets. He’s worked very hard to get to this point.
Leader
“He’s our captain and leader and we are following him. If we get a great result and he gets the Golden Ball he will deserve it. It would be great.” Croatia’s Football Federation yesterday sacked Ognjen Vukojevic, a member of the coaching staff, over a “Glory to Ukraine” video posted after they beat Russia in the quarter-finals on Saturday. The post by Vukojevic and Croatia defender Domagoj Vida was criticised by Russian politicians and led to a warning from FIFA’s disciplinary committee. No action was taken against the player.
Relations between Ukraine and the World Cup hosts remain tense after Russia annexed the Crimean peninsula in 2014.
The Croatian Federation said it had revoked Vukojevic’s accreditation and “apologises to the Russian public for the actions”.
Both Vukojevic and Vida previously played for Ukrainian club Dynamo Kiev.