‘We are a nation who never give in,’ says proud Dalic
Croatia’s ageing players knew this was their last chance to improve on France ’98 achievement
England know all about the pressure that comes with the “golden generation” label. Watching them buckle under the weight of it became a permanent, agonising fixture in successive tournaments.
Belgium’s current crop of players have also carried that heavy burden and, having seen Roberto Martínez’s side fizzle out and lose against France the previous night, one wonders whether that memory was seared on Croatia’s minds, a final reminder before facing England of what they stood to win, and lose.
If St Petersburg presented a likely last roll of the World Cup dice for many of Belgium’s ageing stars, Moscow represented a last shot for Croatia’s own golden generation. It was an occasion that demanded more than a whimpering exit and a lifetime of regrets and, after a slow, underwhelming start, it was as much a combination of character and guts that got Croatia over the line as their class and experience.
For the third game running at this tournament, they came from behind to triumph. “What our players did today – the strength, the stamina and energy levels they showed was fantastic,” Zlatko Dalić, the Croatia coach, said.
“Some players played with injuries that they wouldn’t have played with for other games. Nobody wanted to give in. Nobody wanted to say, ‘I’m not ready’. Nobody in extra time wanted to be subbed. This is what made me proud. They never gave up. We were 1-0 down in three games in a row and have overturned all these and that showed character – we are a nation who never give in.”
It is fitting that France now lie in wait in Sunday’s final. Croatia’s success at France ’98, when they finished third in their first World Cup, has hung heavily over this current group. Robert Prosinecki, Davor Suker and Zvonimir Boban have offered a source of inspiration but also cast a large shadow and the will to carve a new piece of history has been apparent to anyone who has spent time with the Croatia camp recently.
The prospect, 20 years on, of now overcoming France, a hurdle that proved too much for Suker and company as they succumbed to two goals from Lilian Thuram in a 2-1 defeat, is tantalising, something Dalic acknowledged. “In 1998 I was in France to watch the first three games as a supporter but I had to go back to prepare for the next season and couldn’t watch all games,” he said. “Of course everyone in Croatia remembers that game and Thuram and the 2-1. It’s been a topic of discussion for 20 years. The game has a historical context and maybe the Dear Lord is giving us chance to settle a score but we don’t seek revenge. We have to focus on playing the best game possible in the final.”
Whether Croatia can summon the energy to go again, though, will be the pressing question for Dalic. Eight of their starting line-up against England were aged 29 or older, and while that brings with it great experience and know-how and, perhaps above anything, an added desire to seize the moment, all of which were evident here, it also means wearier legs.
For a good while again last night, before adrenalin and determination and that extra class took hold, it was fair to wonder if two draining games against Denmark and Russia in the previous rounds had effectively emptied Croatia’s tank.
Listening to Luka Modric talk in the aftermath of an exhausting quarter-final against the hosts, the Croatia captain seemed far less concerned by England’s threat from set pieces and greater physicality as the toll successive marathons efforts might take.
Croatia had been slow to come to the boil against Russia before upping their tempo after the interval and it was the same here. Whether they can do so again against a stronger, more powerful, more talented France is another matter. Can Mario Mandžukić and Ivan Perišić, their two goalscorers against England, and Modrić and Ivan Rakitić rouse themselves one last time? Can Dejan Lovren and Domagoj Vida hold it together at the back?
It will be a severe test, not least physically. Modrić and Rakitić in midfield aside, if anything embodied Croatia’s greater experience and ability to get the job done, it was Mandžukić’s finish. Harry Kane had squandered a similar opportunity in the first half for England when he had given Lovren the slip. But when John Stones was also caught ballwatching, Mandžukić was not so sparing. The odds favour France. But this Croatia side are unlikely to go away quietly.