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From bloody war in the Balkans to a World Cup heavyweight: How Croatia became a soccer nation

2022-12-13 17:14:43Sport SHKRUAR NGA REDAKSIA VOX
From bloody war in the Balkans to a World Cup heavyweight: How Croatia became a
croatia

Panama, Mauritania, Georgia and Eritrea are four countries with roughly equivalent population sizes to Croatia. These four nations share one World Cup appearance between them and that was when Panama played at Russia 2018, finishing the group stage with three defeats and conceding 11 goals.

Croatia's World Cup pedigree is a completely different story. In six World Cup appearances, the country has reached the semi-finals on three occasions, while four years ago Croatia contested the final, eventually losing to France.

Croatia only gained independence in 1991, during the bloody Balkan war that lasted until 1995, and its population is just under four million, although you'd never know it considering the way it traded blows with the superpower. of football Brazil in the quarter-finals, before winning a penalty.

This success was a case of David taking down Goliath, given that Brazil's population is 214 million people. Today in front of Croatia is Lionel Messi and the population of Argentina: 45 million. Igor Stimac, who played in all of Croatia's 1998 World Cup matches during its third-place run, said the country's recent history has helped play a role in shaping elite competitors.

The Croatian Football Association applied for and was admitted to FIFA in 1992, world football's governing body, and UEFA in 1993. It didn't take long for Croatia to make its mark on the international football scene. First, Croatia reached the quarter-finals of Euro 1996 by beating star-studded Denmark.

Two years later, in their first World Cup appearance, Croatia reached the semi-finals of the 1998 edition in France, eventually finishing third.

Thanks to its first golden generation of players led by Davor Šuker and with Robert Prosinecki and Zvonimir Boban adding plenty of stardust, Croatia qualified with two wins from their group, then beat Romania and Germany in the knockout stages , before losing to eventual winners France in the semi-finals.

Shuker finished as the top scorer of the 1998 tournament and with his distinctive red and black kit, as well as a penchant for upsetting the traditional heavyweights of football, Croatia became an instant favorite for the neutrals. Štimac said his former teammates and the team had a responsibility to lay the foundations for Croatia's modern footballing legacy.

The arrival of Zlatko Dalic as Croatia coach in 2017 has also proved crucial. Having been appointed following the team's qualification for the 2018 World Cup, Dalic came with pressure on his shoulders. With many of the team's star players in their prime especially the midfield trio of Modric, Ivan Rakitic and Marcelo Brozovic, Croatia were expected to perform well. Croatia did better than just perform well.

Thanks to the harmony that Dalic was able to create in the team, Croatia exceeded everyone's expectations by reaching the final, showing incredible courage and resilience to win twice on penalties, followed by an extra-time victory over England in the semi-finals before being beaten by France in the final.

After returning to Croatia and receiving a hero's welcome, with more than 500,000 fans turning the streets of Zagreb into a red and white carpet to celebrate the success of the players, the team was praised for surpassing the so-called "bronze" generation of 1998. With Modric at his best and his magical goalkeeper Dominik Livakovic in superb form and with the squad seemingly capable of grabbing a goal when needed, this Croatian side has continued to surprise, just as it did four years ago.

In 1998, Stimac came off the bench to face Argentina and the likes of Gabriel Batistuta and Juan Sebastian Veron. Tonight, Croatia will meet Lionel Messi and the next generation of Argentine stars, knowing that two victories and a new era of glory stand between them.


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