Zlatko Dalic, captain of the Croatian national team, won the FIFA World Cup in Qatar on Saturday their bronze medal It looks like gold, while the manager of the defeated Moroccans, Saleh Riraji, says their defeat was bitter, but deserved, according to MTI.
After the 2-1 win, Dalic said they had won a “tough game”.
“It’s a bronze medal, but it looks like gold to us. I would like to dedicate our victory to the man who started it all, Ciro Blazevic. Boss, even if you win five World Cup medals, you will still be the coach of coaches,” noted Dalic, who won a silver medal at the World Cup before Four years with the Croats, to his famous predecessor, the legendary captain of the Croatian national team in the 1998 World Cup.
“This is another medal for Croatia. It’s great that we won two medals in two consecutive World Cups, and it’s a huge appreciation for the players.”
Miraslav Orsic scored the second goal for the Croats in the 42nd minute, with a wonderful shot that hit the post. The 29-year-old made his national team debut in 2019, and did not appear in the previous World Cup. The wing confirmed: It will take a few days for them to achieve their victory.
“It was the most important match of my career, which I dedicate to my family and the Croatian fans,” he said.
Luka Modrić was one of the most stable players of the Croatian national team in the tournament and in the bronze medal match. The 37-year-old midfielder did not announce that this was his last World Cup, only hinted at it.
“It may have been so,” he said, “but I can’t say anything for sure about that now.” He added: He wants to play for the national team, and he still plans to play the quarter-finals in the Nations League in June, and he will see what happens after that.
“I am very happy, because I was throughout my career with the national team, during which I actually won my second World Cup medal. I wanted to win the World Cup, that was my big dream, but unfortunately it didn’t happen. Despite that I feel happy to win both medals in the World Cup. world Cup “. He emphasized: It would have been nice for them to play in the final again, but now they finished the World Cup with a winning match, and they can go home with the memory of that. He added that the medal is also important for them, because from now on it cannot be said that the Croatian national team is just a team that “does something every twenty years”.
“With the results achieved in the recent and current world championships, we were able to put the Croatian national team on the map of the big teams,” he said.
The captain of the Moroccan national team, Saleh Riraji, confirmed after the defeat: “Despite the fact that its players were already tired before the match, the Moroccan national team did not give up until the last minute in the match, which was particularly intense, and therefore they had a hard time. Time is primarily physical.
“The defeat is bitter but well deserved. We played many memorable matches, and are stronger than when we arrived here. We united our country for a month, we brought joy to everyone, and I am sure people will be waiting for us. We are happy to be among the four best national teams in the world.” world,” he announced, then congratulated the opponent who, in his opinion, deserved to finish third.
“Through their career, they have shown that the African national team is also capable of reaching the top four places in the World Cup,” Riraji emphasized. He is convinced that in 15-20 years the continent will already have a world champion team, if they work hard and correctly, gain additional experience.
“The goal of the Africans and the Moroccans is to win the World Cup one day. Of course, that means a bigger load and competitive pressure, but Africa is very good. The Moroccan national team has shown that we are really capable of anything because we are never behind. In these matches, it is the small details that decide.” .
Croatia, the silver medalist in the previous World Cup, occupied the podium for the third time on the occasion of its sixth participation in the World Cup, having also won a bronze medal in 1998. Morocco had to settle for being the first African team to reach the top four.
The last match of the tournament will be held in Qatar on Sunday, in the final match, and France will face the defending champion, Argentina.
