‘Dark horses no more’: Croatia cap resurgence with Euro 2020 spot Mccarthy expects Ireland to seal Euro 2020 berth

PARIS: World Cup runners-up Croatia rounded off a rebuilding mission by booking their place at Euro 2020 with a 3-1 win over Slovakia but they are unlikely to sneak under the radar again at next year’s finals.

Croatia secured top spot in Group E, a section also including Hungary, Wales and Azerbaijan, with five wins and two draws from their eight qualifiers.

Coach Zlatko Dalic, who masterminded the run to last year’s World Cup final, has gradually reconstructed a squad that lost Mario Mandzukic, Danijel Subasic and Vedran Corluka to retirement in the wake of the 4-2 loss to France in Russia.

The “Vatreni” -- Croatian for “Fiery Ones” -- needed only a point in Rijeka on Saturday to ensure a spot at the 24-team event, which kicks off in Rome on June 12.

After a shocking start for home fans when Robert Bozenik scored in the 32th minute, Croatia’s qualification was never in doubt once Nikola Vlasic drilled home the leveller in the second half.

Bruno Petkovic headed the hosts in front and Ivan Perisic sealed the three points with a thumping finish with 16 minutes left.

“I’m relieved ... proud and happy,” Dalic said after the match.

“These boys deserved the European Championship. This is the crowning moment for all that we have done in this year and a half since the World Cup.”

But the path through qualifying, preceded by a poor showing in the Nations League, where Croatia finished last in their group behind Spain and England, was far from plain sailing.

Thumped 6-0 by Spain in their first competitive outing since the World Cup, Dalic spoke of the need for “fresh blood” to rejuvenate his side.

Incorporating the likes of Petkovic, Josip Brekalo and Vlasic, Croatia began their qualifying bid with a difficult 2-1 victory against Azerbaijan at home in March.

They slumped to a defeat by the same scoreline away to Hungary days later, but victory over Wales in June and a 4-0 win away to Slovakia rebuilt fragile confidence.

A disappointing 1-1 draw in Azerbaijan was a setback but Croatia recovered to dismiss Hungary 3-0, before a point in Cardiff left them on the brink of qualification.

For the former Yugoslav republic, independent since 1991, it is the sixth time it will play at the European Championship.

“We are getting young players who today played like veterans. Vlasic and (Dino) Peric played superbly,” Dalic said Saturday.

Croatian papers Sunday echoed his view, praising the squad and Dalic who became just the second coach to take the country to two successive major tournaments.

The legendary Miroslav Ciro Blazevic was the first, leading Croatia to the Euro ‘96 quarter-finals and a third-place finish at the 1998 World Cup in France.

The nation of 4.2 million people reached the World Cup final last year for the first time, inspired by captain Luka Modric, but eventually fell to a heavily fancied France.

“In a bit more than a year Croatia formed an excellent ‘make up’ and that is why we are looking forward to the European tournament,” the Sportske Novosti daily commented Sunday.

“Croatia will not be a ‘dark horse’ in summer 2020 but will be rather attacking from the front rows, which is both an advantage and a burden.”

DUBLIN: Mick Mccarthy expects the Republic of Ireland to qualify for Euro 2020 with a win in their decisive showdown against Denmark.

Mccarthy’s side can clinch a third successive trip to the European Championship if they beat the Danes in Dublin on Monday.

It will be the sixth time the sides have met in two years and the Republic have failed to win any of the previous five, drawing four and losing one.

Denmark are currently top of Group D, three points ahead of third-placed Ireland.

But Republic boss Mccarthy is convinced that barren run against Denmark will come to an end at the Aviva Stadium.

“When people tell me that ‘You haven’t beaten somebody for so many times’, well, I always believe it’s about time we did and that’s the mentality that I try to instil into everybody else,” Mccarthy told reporters on Sunday.

“Just because it hasn’t happened before doesn’t mean it’s not going to happen again.

“There’s loads of places being flooded in England at the minute - they’ve never been flooded before, but they are because it’s been raining a lot.

“I just think that for us, always there’s a big performance in us that can win a game. If I don’t believe it, I might as well go home - and I’m not going home anytime soon.”

Asked if he accepted that

Age Hareide’s team were technically better than his, Mccarthy responded by referencing then second-tier Sunderland’s shock 1973 FA Cup final win over Leeds as proof that underdogs can upset the odds.

“If I sat here and said I was better than everyone else, you wouldn’t believe me, would you?” he said.

“I’ve seen a lot of cup finals. I was a big Leeds fan as a kid. I remember watching them against Sunderland. They were an absolute shoo-in, Sunderland couldn’t win. And guess what? They did.

“All of the games I’ve seen or been involved in subsequently when teams shouldn’t win and the other side has a better team and better players and a better manager and everything is in their favour, and they get slapped - well, that’s what I’m hoping will happen tomorrow.”

Mccarthy is confident Ireland will give a better account of themselves than they did back in 2017 when, after drawing the first leg of their World Cup play-off 0-0 in Copenhagen, they returned to Dublin with high hopes only to be trounced 5-1.

The former Millwall manager guided Ireland to the World Cup finals in 2002, but even he admits to feeling a few nerves on the eve of his latest big game.

“I’ve woken up this morning with the butterflies with the boots on and I’m pleased about that, to be honest with you,” he said.

“I hope I am going to have a bigger one in July, bigger games playing in the European Championship. But for now, this is the biggest one.”

MADRID: Real Madrid striker Karim Benzema has told French Football Federation president Noel Le Graet he and he alone will decide when the time to end his international retirement has come.

After Real coach Zinedine Zidane called for Benzema’s four-year France exile, caused by his alleged part in an attempt to blackmail Mathieu Valbuena, to end this week,

Le Graet told French radio Benzema’s adventure with the French team was finished.“noel, I thought you didn’t interfere with the decisions of the France coach,” said Benzema on Twitter.

“Please understand that I and I alone will call an end to my international career.” Benzema, who is of Algerian origin, added that Le Graet should “let me play for one of the countries for which I’m eligible” if he thinks the 31-year-old is done.

Benzema has not played for France since 2015, when he was placed under formal investigation over the blackmail attempt.