Croatia beat 2008 quarter-finalists Ireland Republic 3-1 at Poznan Municipal Stadium. It was an unsatisfactory night for the oldest coach ever at the tournament, Giovanni Trapattoni, and the 73-year-old will be on tenterhooks that his boys in green imitate the character shown by one of his former teams Italy.
Mario Mandzukic was the Man of the Match for Croatia- he netted a brace to put his on the driving seat in Group C. Critical hand-outs at the commencement of each half from the Wolfsburg front-man were accountable for Croatia's victory.
Pushed in on the right of Nikica Jelavic, Mandzukic's connected play granted an unvarying threat.
Ireland on no account recovered, regardless of the concise spell of anticipation brought about by Sean St Ledger's equalizer in the 19th minute.
Croatia coach Slaven Bilic said "Tonight we showed that we can play."
"Maybe the Irish were the better team in some moments, but I think that if you look, the overall impression is that we were the much better team."
"We are strong as a team, and I think that after this match we are getting even better and even stronger. I expect to play even better against Italy because the first match is the most difficult, and this is behind us."
"We have three points, and we're top of the group."
"One win would be enough to go to the quarter-finals. We cannot fly in the championship, but let's go step by step. We respect all our opponents."
"We have no fear against anyone. Spain and Italy are favorites in our group, but I still think we are able to beat one of them."
Mandzukic said "It was a hard match. We knew that it wasn't going to be easy".
"We did our best and I think we deserved a victory. It was very important that we scored an early goal."
"It was not so easy on the pitch. They are really good fighters."
"My Dad asked me to score a goal with my head. I'm a really tall player and I like to have my chances."
This was the first time Ireland has ever conceded three goals in a match at a major international final - they had previously gone 17 games without doing so.
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Mario Mandzukic was the Man of the Match for Croatia- he netted a brace to put his on the driving seat in Group C. Critical hand-outs at the commencement of each half from the Wolfsburg front-man were accountable for Croatia's victory.
Pushed in on the right of Nikica Jelavic, Mandzukic's connected play granted an unvarying threat.
Croatia coach Slaven Bilic said "Tonight we showed that we can play."
"Maybe the Irish were the better team in some moments, but I think that if you look, the overall impression is that we were the much better team."
"We are strong as a team, and I think that after this match we are getting even better and even stronger. I expect to play even better against Italy because the first match is the most difficult, and this is behind us."
"We have three points, and we're top of the group."
"One win would be enough to go to the quarter-finals. We cannot fly in the championship, but let's go step by step. We respect all our opponents."
"We have no fear against anyone. Spain and Italy are favorites in our group, but I still think we are able to beat one of them."
Mandzukic said "It was a hard match. We knew that it wasn't going to be easy".
"We did our best and I think we deserved a victory. It was very important that we scored an early goal."
"It was not so easy on the pitch. They are really good fighters."
"My Dad asked me to score a goal with my head. I'm a really tall player and I like to have my chances."
This was the first time Ireland has ever conceded three goals in a match at a major international final - they had previously gone 17 games without doing so.
Keyword- Football News | Latest Football News | Football Blog | Blog for Football | Latest Soccer News
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