• FOOTBALL

    CROATIA DRAWN WITH SPAIN, ENGLAND AND THE CZECH REPUBLIC

    tsg_news Posted on

    The Croatia national football team will play in Group 3 of League A in the fifth edition of the UEFA Nations League, alongside Spain, England and the Czech Republic. That was the outcome of the draw for the prestigious European national-team competition, held in Brussels.

    The exact fixture list and kick-off times in the group will be set on Friday. The group stage will be played from September to November this year; the quarter-finals are scheduled for 25–30 March, and the finals tournament for 9–13 June 2027.

    The top two teams in each group will qualify for the quarter-finals. Third-placed teams will play relegation/promotion play-offs against the runners-up from League B, while fourth-placed teams will be relegated to League B.

    By way of reminder, in the previous Nations League edition Croatia were stopped in the quarter-finals by France, while the Vatreni’s best result came in 2023, when they won the silver medal in Rotterdam. After defeating hosts the Netherlands in a spectacular semi-final, they lost to Spain in the final after a penalty shootout.

    LEAGUE A

    • Group A1: France, Italy, Belgium, Turkey
    • Group A2: Germany, Netherlands, Serbia, Greece
    • Group A3: Spain, Croatia, England, Czech Republic
    • Group A4: Portugal, Denmark, Norway, Wales

    It’s nice to see Croatia again in such selected company, among the best national teams in the world. It’s also pleasing to feel the respect of the entire football world, as shown by the statement from Fernando Llorente, who singled us out as one of the favourites for the competition. Objectively speaking, we drew very demanding opponents—especially Spain and England, two of the best teams in the world – Marijan Kustić, CFF president

    However, Croatia has already shown many times that it knows how to play best against the best opponents, so I expect that we will be at a high level this time as well, and that the fans will enjoy spectacular matches,” said Kustić.

    Vedran Ćorluka, assistant to Croatia head coach Zlatko Dalić, commented on the Nations League draw that placed Croatia in a group with Spain, England and the Czech Republic.

    It’s quite a tough group—we drew Spain and England, who are among the main favourites for the competition—but we can be satisfied because we’ll be playing against big opponents. Players and coaches like that. We’ll prepare well for sure and compete with our opponents, as we have done in previous matches against the same rivals. You always have some wishes. We haven’t played the Germans for a long time, so we hoped to face them, but the draw brought what it brought. We’ll definitely prepare well—and in any case, we’re meeting the English again soon, so there won’t be any unknowns. – said Ćorluka, who admitted he had certain wishes ahead of the draw

    Former Spanish international Fernando Llorente singled out Croatia as one of the favourites for the competition.

    That means a lot. You can see the reputation the Croatian national team has in the world, and that people here see us as a powerhouse. All praise to the head coach, the players, and everyone at the Croatian Football Federation for taking this team to such heights and for the way people are speaking about us on this stage. It’s a good sign that we’ll be a dangerous opponent for everyone in this group too, and that we’ll try to find our place in the quarter-finals. – Vedran Ćorluka

    Tagged:

    LEAVE A RESPONSE

    tsg_news
    View all posts

    You Might Also Like