Croatia: Road to Euro 2012
For a country that has seen ups and downs of the largest proportions in the past decade, Euro 2012 might just be a stage to find some consistency for Croatia.
- NDTVSports
- Updated: May 22, 2012 06:07 PM IST
For a country that has seen ups and downs of the largest proportions in the past decade, Euro 2012 might just be a stage to find some consistency for Croatia.
Croatia's journey at Euro 2012 will largely depend on whether their midfield is able to fire or not. Boasting the likes of Luka Modric, Nico Krancjar and captain Darijo Srna, Croatia could be a handful, even for the likes of Spain and Italy who have been placed alongside them in Group C besides Republic of Ireland.
Croatia's passage to the main draw of the tournament included seven wins, two losses and a draw in qualifying. Croatia started with a bang with a 3-0 victory over Latvia followed by a goalless draw against Greece, a 2-1 win over Israel and a 3-0 romp over Malta. However, a 1-0 loss against Georgia stalled their campaign but fortunately only for a week when Croatia avenged their defeat - a 2-1 victory in the home leg. Malta and Israel were then subjected to 3-1 defeats by Croatia before group winners Greece halted their charge by inflicting a 2-0 defeat. Croatia finished with a 2-0 win against Latvia to secure a place in the playoffs where they crushed a tough-looking Turkish line-up.
Croatia's biggest strength could be their varied sources of goals which makes it difficult for teams to set up their strategies for them.
Their manager Slaven Bilic took a bold decision by dropping veteran strikers Mladen Petric and Ivan Klasnic from the squad, it will be interesting to see if the gamble pays off.