Croatian coach Dalic said the team would not be deceived by Belgium's last two bad games and Croatia would never underestimate Belgium. Dalic stressed that Belgium is currently ranked second in the FIFA world, whereas in the past they used to be number one.
Screenshot of the Mirror report
In the last two World Cup group games, Belgium has played quite poorly. After the 2-0 defeat to Morocco, there were even rumors of infighting within the team. Although captain Eden Hazard, goalkeeper Courtois and head coach Martinez vehemently deny it, people who are well versed in the tradition of Belgian football know that there are indeed some different voices in the Belgian team this time.
In the final group game, Belgium faced Croatia, runners-up in the previous World Cup. Although Croatia's average age is also old, the team is more united than Belgium's. Head coach Dalic also stressed in his pre-match press conference that the Belgian team must not be ignored and underestimated.
Dalic said: "We need to be clear that our opponent is Belgium, which is second in FIFA, and they used to be number one in the world. Belgium is a strong team and if we had a choice, we would not have chosen this match as a decisive one. Belgium has De Bruyne and Eden Hazard in the squad and we will not be fooled by stories and rumours in the media. We are looking forward to the best Belgium, a top national team. ”
"It must be noted that we will not be deceived by the performances of the Belgian team in the last two games. We're going to have a high-quality, high-paced game like we did against Canada and there's no doubt it's going to be a tough game. Belgium didn't become a bad team overnight and I don't focus on anything else, we just focus on their quality and ability. ”
Croatia's midfielder Mateo Kovacic also quipped that if the manager asks him how to defend Romelu Lukaku, then the best way is for Lukaku not to play.