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Outsider Croatia not done yet
Croatians think they can reach the final
Posted: Tuesday July 07, 1998 09:48 AM
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Can Croatia keep its glass slippers on and dance past France? (AP) |
VITTEL, France (AP) --
Croatian
star Davor Suker hasn't had his fill yet, even though his team is in the
World Cup semifinals on its first attempt. "The most emotional thing is
being here for the first time, but you still have to write the story until
the end," the striker said Tuesday. "What's important is to reach the
final." Croatia is battling host France in Paris on Wednesday for a
spot in the title match. Coach Miroslav Blazevic said he will stick
with the lineup that humiliated Germany 3-0 in
the quarterfinal. "It's logical that the team that achieved such a
result will remain unchanged," he said at the team's training headquarters
in this eastern French spa town. Suker said Croatia will be fresher
for the semifinal than France, which needed an overtime Golden Goal to down
Paraguay in
the second round and penalty kicks to overcome Italy after a
scoreless draw in their quarterfinal. "This is our advantage," Suker
said. "They will feel that more and more with every minute the game goes
on." The Real Madrid striker insisted that he and his teammates
won't have trouble maintaining their ambition after the triumph over
Germany, where Croatia satisfied its hunger to avenge a stinging defeat by
the Germans at the 1996 European Championship. "When you play in the
World Cup, all the players are euphoric," he said. Blazevic conceded
he still believes France is the top contender for the world champion's
title. "No team has such a concentration of talent," he said,
rattling off a list of top European clubs for which the French
internationals play. But he noted that Croatia's outsider role has
served it well so far. "It's precisely when you play against the big
favorite that you are motivated," he said.
Copyright 2003 Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
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