KEEPING THE FAITH
Fit-again Barisic ready to shine for Croatia after the season of his dreams with Rangers
BORNA BARISIC is ready. Drawing confidence from the season of his dreams at Rangers, the left-back is determined to help Croatia follow up victory over Scotland in Monday evening’s showdown against Spain.
Just being available for the last-16 meeting in Copenhagen comes as a relief. A back injury sustained in training before the tournament meant Barisic missed the Group D matches against England and the Czech Republic.
Coming off the bench for the final 19 minutes of Croatia’s 3-1 win at Hampden gave the 28-year-old a first-ever appearance at a major finals.
While that night marked the end of Scotland’s ambitions, Barisic hopes his own Euros story has only just started.
He isn’t naive about the threat that will be posed by Spain — 5-0 hammerers of Slovakia in their last outing — when the two nations meet in Copenhagen.
But he has faith in Croatia. Faith in Luka Modric and its other stars. And faith in himself after helping Rangers end a ten-year wait for the league title with an unbeaten Premiership campaign.
The Ibrox defender was clear when asked if success at club level had deepened his confidence to meet the huge challenge now facing his country.
‘Yes, absolutely,’ said Barisic, who could replace teenager Josko Gvardiol in the starting line-up against Spain.
‘When you have a season like the season I had — not just on a personal level but all of the club — then of course that brings a lot of self-confidence.
‘We had big matches at Rangers with the championship and also the Europa League.
‘So all of that brings confidence, especially in big matches for the national team.
‘Does being at the Euros top off a dream season for me? Of course it does. I didn’t think about it during the season because I was focused on Rangers during that time and winning the championship.
‘But at the moment when we won, I started focusing more and more on the Euros. This is really the cherry on top for me.’
For a while, it looked as though the cake might go unadorned. Barisic’s domestic season ended a little prematurely when he limped out of a 4-1 win over Celtic on May 2.
He returned to fitness to feature in Croatia’s friendlies against Armenia and Belgium, only to suffer a setback at their training camp in Rovinj.
‘Of course, when I had my first injury against Celtic, I was worried about the Euros, I was worried about the condition I’d be in when I came to Croatia,’ admitted Barisic.
‘I managed to fix that and came in good condition.
‘Unfortunately, I then had an unusual injury with my back and that messed with my plans a bit but, thank God, everything is fine now, everything is good.
‘I played those 20 minutes against Scotland and managed to do my part a bit and help the team qualify for the next round.’
Fellow Rangers full-back Nathan Patterson also came off the bench on Tuesday night. While he and his Scotland colleagues were left bitterly disappointed by a 3-1 defeat, Barisic has been buoyed by messages of support from his Ibrox colleagues.
‘Even ahead of the tournament and ahead of the match, they wished me good luck,’ he continued.
‘After the Scotland match, people congratulated me and there were messages that we deserved the win and deserved to go through and that they were supporting Croatia further on in the tournament, which made me very happy. We have a lot of support from Scotland.’
Steven Gerrard has been among
the well-wishers but Barisic declined to reveal what specific advice has been offered by his club manager, a veteran of three European Championships and three World Cups.
In truth, the left-back is surrounded by more than enough know-how. This Croatia squad still contains a fair chunk of the team that reached the 2018 World Cup final. Not least Modric.
Marking his 141st cap, the 35-year-old crowned a virtuoso display at Hampden with a sublime goal off the outside of his right boot.
Modric led by example. After so much criticism of their previous displays, Croatia — and their talismanic skipper — might have found form at the right time heading into the knockout stages.
‘I think the game against Scotland gave us a lot of confidence and a boost of energy and belief,’ declared Barisic.
‘It gave us a jumping-off point for everything that is coming now.
‘But it’s behind us now. We need to focus on the next match. It might be more difficult, but the Scotland game gives a reason to build up optimism for what is coming.’
Spain got their tournament off to a pretty sluggish start, too, before cutting loose against Slovakia on Wednesday to secure second spot in Group E.
‘Of course there are going to be differences to the past matches,’ added Barisic.
‘Spain love possession and they have excellent qualities in terms of keeping the ball.
‘They are dangerous when they have it, so we have to set ourselves up for a different style of play compared to the three group games.
‘Is it easier not being favourites? That’s kind of a double-edged sword. When you are going into a game not as favourite, then maybe you are a little bit more relaxed mentally.
‘But then if you are not the favourite, it means the team you’re playing against, at least theoretically, is better.
‘The one thing for sure is that it’s not going to be an easy match. We know how good Spain are.
‘But I am very optimistic. I don’t have any doubts about our quality, which we have shown so many times in the past.
‘If we build our attitude and style of play based on our last game, then I do believe that we will play an excellent match against Spain.’