• FOOTBALL

    ALBANIA BEAT CROATIA AND PUSHED TOWARDS A LOWER RANK

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    CROATIA – ALBANIA 1:2 (Slipčević 11’/F. Berisha 32′, Balog 71′ og.)
    Croatia: Radolović, Jelenčić, Balog, Vračević, Nevrkla, Jakobašić (Marković 53′), Slipčević (Lojna 83′), Mikulica (Živković 53′), Joščak, Galic, Rudelić
    Albania: Hyska, Tukaj, Hamonikaj, Bajraktari, Hila, F. Berisha (Istrefaj 89′), Zarka, Franja, Kraniqi, Doci, Troka (Maksuti 86′)

    Today’s match between Croatia and Albania in the UEFA Women’s Nations League ended with Albania winning 2:1. Croatia took the lead in the 11th minute with a goal by Ivana Slipčević. Still, Fortes Berisha equalized in the 32nd minute. The key moment happened in the 71st minute when Leonarda Balog scored an own goal, which secured victory for Albania.

    This result further deepened the crisis of the Croatian women’s football team, which had not achieved a victory in ten months. Currently, they are in the last place of the group without points and with a goal difference of 2:12, which practically leads them to the lowest rank of the competition, League C. Despite the desire to return after the defeat against Albania four days ago (4:0), the Croatian footballers failed to turn the situation around.

    Statistically speaking, Croatia has big problems in defense, conceding goals in the last eight games in a row. On the other hand, Albania is not without its problems, but today, it has shown more determination and has taken advantage of key opportunities.

    On the occasion of the hundredth game, Kristina Nevrkla received a special jersey with the number one hundred, a medal, and an honorary cap as a symbol of this great jubilee. The prizes were awarded by the Secretary General of HNS, Tomislav Svetina, and the Chief Instructor of HNS, Petar Krpan.

    The coach of the Croatian national team, Nenad Gračan, also reflected on the result:

    Regardless of the defeats we’ve had now, I don’t think we should look for too much of an alibi. I think the girls wanted and wanted and were motivated, but it didn’t work out. Albania should be congratulated, it is a team with good players. They are much more experienced than us, you saw it yourself. And when goals like this happen to us, it is very difficult to expect a positive result.

    And the first half when we got that first goal, it was a series of mistakes, so these are all things that happen. We are already used to it all together, but it is important to emphasize that there were 12 players in 2004 and younger. I think it is good for them to get used to this kind of football. It’s different than our league, it’s much tighter and different in every sense. I think it will be good for everyone if we make a step forward in the future, although we did because this is already the third year, the third cycle that we are in the B group. I think that it is very demanding and very difficult for them. In addition, we were missing a lot of players, and surely it is much more difficult to achieve a result.

    We don’t have a lot of changes in the roster, 30, 35 players that we rotate. Young players from U-19 are coming and that is what we want in a way, and maybe by going to group C it will be simpler and easier for them, considering the quality of those national teams, to gain even better self-confidence, to make it a bit simpler in the game itself as far as that is concerned. Through all these games and to get up and try to get back to the B group, that is realistic. Romania, Slovenia, Slovakia, they are all national teams that we lost to and that came to the C League and came back, as well as Albania that came back – it is a very aggressive and good national team.

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