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DEJAN LOVREN has angrily hit back at suggestions he may still be haunted by his Wembley horror show against Harry Kane.
Lovren got rattled yesterday when reminded he was hauled off after just 31 minutes on a torrid afternoon for Liverpool, who were thrashed 4-1 by a Kane-inspired Tottenham last October.
The Croatia defender insists that embarrassing encounter will have no relevance when the pair square up in the Luzhniki Stadium tonight with a place in the World Cup Final at stake.
And Lovren was far from happy when quizzed about his memories of being hauled off by Jurgen Klopp after the England captain left him trailing in his wake by scoring one and setting up Spurs’ second.
Respect
Lovren said: “I don’t know what to say in response to this question. It’s completely irrelevant, that 4-1 defeat against Tottenham.
“Why didn’t you ask me how I played well against him? You are just nitpicking my poor performances.
“I have all respect for Harry Kane. He’s been showing season in, season out that he’s one of the best strikers in the Premier League. He is constant. He bangs in goals.
“He’s one of the greatest threats but he’s not alone. His team-mates play at top-drawer clubs. It’s going to be a difficult task for all of us.
“But if we are ready to give our all on the pitch, like we did when we played Argentina, if we will be compact, then I don’t believe that there will be problems.”
The bad news for Lovren is that Kane is bang in form with six goals as he chases the Golden Boot.
Lovren also got agitated when asked to comment on the euphoria gripping the country where he plays his club football.
He said: “Frankly I don’t read what is going on in England. I am reading about my own country after each game.
“I can imagine the same kind of scenes, very great and positive atmosphere back in England.
“They expect to win but our people are also expecting us to win, so it’s going to be difficult, intriguing and interesting for both teams.”
After kicking off the tournament in sparkling fashion with three wins out of three in the group stages, Croatia have needed extra-time and penalties to overcome Denmark and hosts Russia.
But coach Zlatko Dalic dismisses fears that fatigue could be a decisive factor tonight when Croatia face an England side who relatively breezed through their quarter-final match against Sweden.
Desire, he says, is the fuel that will drive on Croatia.
Dalic said: “We are a country where anything is possible.
“There are only four million of us but these are four million coaches and four million players.
“And they are all out in the streets celebrating and this gives us enormous pride. If you compare what we have achieved to the infrastructure at home, it is impossible.
“This is our pride, our emotion and our national feeling. This is what drives us, it is our petrol.
“We are back in the semis after 20 years and we have deserved it.
“Football has made many people happy back home and I can’t imagine what would happen if we won the World Cup.
“Probably nobody would go to work. We are not working much now… you can imagine what it would be like if we won.”