Oman Daily Observer

CROATIAN PLAYERS GIVE CREDIT TO MOROCCO DEFENCE

- ADIL AL BALUSHI

Croatian player Borna Sosa, said that Morocco’s players were very good in defence after their goalless draw. Luka Modric added in his exclusive statements post the match that he is really proud to play this edition of 2022 Fifa World Cup in Qatar and attending in this top football event is a big achievemen­t for any player.

“Morocco is an organised team and they got good support from the crowd as well. They managed to defend with eleven men properly. We had many scoring attempts while the rivals did not have chances as ours. The target was to end the game with three points but it is time now to close the chapter of this match and start preparatio­n for the forthcomin­g two encounters,” Sosa said.

Responding to an inquiry on the stadium, he said:” Stadium was very comfortabl­e and the temperatur­es were few degrees lower,” he said. On the other hand, Croatia’s Josip

Juranovic, affirmed that the team did not take the advantages of many scoring chances. “In the world Cup, you may predict anything in the score. The team’s goal was to win the match but it finished in a goalless draw. Morocco were strong team and they managed to save all our attempts. We will focus in the rest of the matches in group stage in order to qualify,” he said.

Commenting to an inquiry on team’s chances this year in comparison with the previous edition as Croatia ended as runners-up, he responded:” The team’s objective is very high in this World Cup but surprises may happen at any time as Saudi Arabia defeated Argentina on Tuesday.”

Juranovic commented on the tournament’s venues and facilities, he said:” Stadiums are good and temperatur­e are 23 and 24 degree Celsius but we need to adapt quickly in playing at these venues,” he concluded.

 ?? — AFP ?? Morocco’s defender Achraf Hakimi and Croatia’s defender Borna Sosa fight for the ball at the Al Bayt Stadium in Al Khor.
— AFP Morocco’s defender Achraf Hakimi and Croatia’s defender Borna Sosa fight for the ball at the Al Bayt Stadium in Al Khor.

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