After winning the match against England last night, Croatia captain; Luka Modric said the team was underestimated by English pundits who lacked respect.
Zlatko Dalic’s side beat England 2-1 in extra time to reach the World Cup final for the first time in their history.
Midfielder Modric said the team had been motivated by people saying they would be “tired” after their previous two matches went to penalty shootouts. In a statement, he said the team made sure they showed the naysayers they were far from tired as they dominated the game physically, mentally and in all aspects.
Kieran Trippier gave England the lead in Moscow, but Ivan Perisic levelled for Croatia before Mario Mandzukic scored the winning goal in the 109th minute.
Modric who plays for Real Madrid said English journalists, pundits from television made a huge mistake underestimating Croatia. He told them to be more humble and respect more opponents.
Croatia, whose previous best World Cup performance was a third-place finish in 1998, face France in Moscow on Sunday.
Croatia defender Dejan Lovren said Modric deserves to win the Ballon d’Or if they win Sunday’s final, describing his team-mate as the “best midfield player in the world”.
Join our twitter community :