Croatia’s search for 1998 en-core pitted against Russia’s emergence from laughingstock to stars
Croatia are targeting the World Cup semi-finals for the first time since 1998 — when they made their debut as an independent nation on football's biggest stage.
It is unwise to look too far ahead at an event so full of surprises, but will a Croatian team facing host nation Russia in the last eight ever get a better chance to outdo the heroes of two decades agoIJ
Zlatko Dalic's side showed in their comprehensive dismantling of Argentina during the group phase that they have no fear of the big names, and there is a strong case to say they are the best team left in their half of the draw.
England might disagree, and the two countries could yet meet in the semi-finals.
However, while Croatia needed penalties to beat Denmark in the last round, they have come to Sochi full of confidence.
"We have shown in this World Cup that we have the right to hope for big things. We are playing really well and we have such players that we certainly should believe can go to the very end," said defender Domagoj Vida.
Any team boasting a player of luka Modric's quality can afford to dream, especially when he is supported by Ivan Rakitic and Mario Mandzukic.
"He is our captain, he is our leader, we all stand behind him," said Inter Milan winger Ivan Perisic of Modric.
20-year shadow
Twenty years ago, Croatia made their World Cup debut with a result that happened only once previously in the tournament's history and has never been topped.
Finishing in third place the first time they participated in football’s biggest showcase set a lofty standard.
The Croatians' memorable run to the semifinals in 1998 remains a moment of pride for the country. It also created a shadow every successive Croatia team has been forced to deal with and has not come close to matching. Until now.
Croatia can equal what that 1998 team did if they beat Russia on Saturday in the quarterfinals and perhaps finally rid themselves of that 20-year shadow.
The current squad of stars such as luka Modric, Ivan Perisic, Mario Mandzukic and Ivan Rakitic will be held in the same esteem as the stars of '98 such as Davor Suker, Zvonimir Boban and Slaven Bilic with one more victory.
Or if they can't get past the home team, they will be the latest Croatia team to fall short.
"It has been talked a lot about the two teams and their similarities," Perisic said.
"They achieved a historic result in France. Now we've come close and hopefully we can even do it a little bit better than them. We know our quality and we believe in ourselves and we are on the right track at the moment."
The current group of Croatians has become tired of hearing about what happened in 1998. It's not a matter of respect — there is great admiration for what the '98 team accomplished — but matching or exceeding what that team did has been a burden in every major tournament for the past 20 years.
As Rakitic said recently, "At this point we need to forget about them, with all respect to them." Croatia's third place finish in its debut has been equaled only by Portugal in 1966 when the tournament featured just 16 teams. The 1998 team finished second in its group, beat Romania in the round of 16 and knocked off Germany 3-0 in the quarterfinals. Croatia lost to eventual champion France in the semifinals, but rebounded to beat the Netherlands and finish third.
It's what Croatia has done - or hasn't - in the four World Cups since that debut which has created the shadow this team plays under.
"It was different football 20 year ago," Ante Rebic said.
"They achieved a top fantastic result. We are now on a good way and have great support in Croatia and I believe in our team we can do something similar."
Russian emergence
Three weeks ago, the players on Russia's national football team were laughingstocks, targets for jokes and social-media memes.
Russia have gone further in this year's World Cup than their fans ever expected, all the way to the quarterfinals against Croatia, and their players and coach have gone from figures of fun to national treasures.
Russia coach Stanislav Cherchesov warned his team to avoid reading Russian newspapers before the tournament, when they were widely ridiculed. That's still the policy, if only to stop the team from getting overconfident from all the praise.
"Criticism needs to be constructive and not insulting," Cherchesov said Friday. "We can't get into euphoria. Teams who are stronger than us on paper have already gone home."
Cherchesov's tactical ability was mocked after Russia arrived at the World Cup without a win in seven games. He was seen as an unsophisticated "gym teacher" whose biggest accomplishment as a coach was winning the Polish league.
late-night TV host Ivan Urgant launched a tongue-in-cheek campaign for fans to support Cherchesov by wearing "victory mustaches" in imitation of his facial hair. After Russia started winning games, many fans embraced the gesture, now without a hint of irony.
Igor Akinfeev is the goalkeeper who stopped Spain in the shootout and sent Russia to the quarterfinals, but he was once better known for his blunders.
Akinfeev looked nervous in big matches and went 42 games over a decade without a shutout in the Champions league. At the 2014 World Cup, he let a weak shot from South Korea slip through his fingers.
Stopping Spain in the penalty shootout has transformed Akinfeev's reputation forever.
An image of him as a Russian Orthodox saint was widely shared online on Tuesday, and opposition leader Alexei Navalny said he should get the Russian state's highest honor, the rank of Hero of Russia.
Russia's Central Bank proudly pointed out Akinfeev's final penalty save was a near-match for one depicted on a World Cup-themed banknote.
"Prediction always was our strong suit," the bank wrote.
DRESSING ROOM TAlK
Russia are very comfortable playing on the break, they work hard and they are well-organised. I know they are going to try and take their chance to progress. It's going to be spectacular to face Russia and their fans... They have already got past serious problems to get this far, especially as they have the lowest FIFA ranking. But I want this Croatian side to confirm its talent and take another step forward
—luka modric
It was different football 20 year ago. They achieved a top fantastic result. We are now on a good way and have great support in Croatia and I believe in our team we can do something similar
—ante rebic
We have shown in this World Cup that we have the right to hope for big things. We are playing really well and we have such players that we certainly should believe can go to the very end
—Domagoj Vida
It has been talked a lot about the two teams and their similarities. They achieved a historic result in France. Now we've come close and hopefully we can even do it a little bit better than them. We know our quality and we believe in ourselves and we are on the right track at the moment. It was a dream to be in a similar situation one day. Now is the time and hopefully we can achieve a similar result. That's why we are really looking forward to the game against Russia
—ivan perisic