In the opening match of UEFA CUP qualifiers, Hajduk Split left Poljud satisfied with a convincing 4-0 victory over Maltese Birkirkara. Hajduk goal scorers were Ibričić (2), Kalinić (24), Bušić (54) and Tičinović (74). The return leg, as if anyone cares, will be in Malta on the 31st of July.
Croatian Prime minister, Ivo Sanader, was one of 15,000 in attendance at the Poljud. Even though Birkirkara has a rating of zero and didn't manage one shot on target, Torcida and Hajduk fans were more than satisfied with the effort of this 'new' Hajduk team.
Bušić (54) and Tičinović (74) goals
The Torcida left a special message for Hajduk-Dinamo transfer Mirko Hrgović:
"Hrgoviću, tko te jebe, možemo mi i bez tebe, Hajduk šampion!"
Well, this is it until world cup 2010 qualifiers in September. Hopefully, all of you have enjoyed the Euro and CroatianSoccerReport.com
Croatia-Turkey
After the victory over Poland, everyone in Zagreb pictured us fighting with Germany for a place in the final. Croatians were predicting scores of 2-0, 3-0, and even 4-0. Remember before the Austria game, many of you had the same thoughts.
I predicted 2-1 for Croatia before the match. On paper we are superior to Turkey and Austria, however no one wins without scoring.
If you would recall, on Monday, June 16th, under "Where is Eduardo???" post, I replied,
If Petrić wakes up, we make the final. However, Olić, Klasnić, and an inexperienced Kalinić, we wont score more than once. Igor Budan is also finished for the tournament.
Klasnić played well in the limited amount of time he recieved. However, a great striker would have scored three times against Poland. Klasnić had half a dozen scoring chances against Poland and didn't convert.
Before the game, I figured it would take 2 goals to come out victorious.
Who to hold responsible?
This is a dificult question. With a little luck, Croatia would be in Basel preparing for the Germans.
I would blame Petrić for not showing up. Olić gave 110% and fought every second he was on the pitch. However, it just was one of those days. I would blame Croatia for getting an offsides call the last second of the game. The ref, made the right call. Bottom line, if Croatia can't hold Turkey for a minute after the goal, they don't deserve to advance.
I feel for the Croatian defense and Niko Kovac. Once again, they were unbelievable.
Once again, I am over 24 hours late in bringing you time sensitive information. However, finding an internet cafe in Vienna at midnight is a difficult task. Also, for some reason, this computer won't allow me to upload pictures, so I guess photobucket is my only option. By clicking on the picture, you will be redirected to photobucket.
Where to start. So much to say, have to organize my thoughts.
Ante has done an excellent job with the preview, summary, and final thoughts on the game. I will try to fill you in on events that ESPN failed to catch.
Hours before the match, Croatian and Turkish fans got into it in front of the Cathedral on the main square. Chairs, beer, cups, and other objects were thrown at 'enemies.' Fortunately, Austrain police was quick to the scene, arresting a few suporters from both sides.
Thousands of Croatian fans flocked to the stadium. For some reason, my eyes are peeled for the women in attendance.
We sat in a neutral section, however, 10 meters from the Turkish section of the stadium.
For some reason, I was a nervous wreck for this game. As time went by, a little man sitting on my shoulder watching the match whispered "penalties." I couldn't see us breaking the Turkish stranglehold, and more importantly, I couldn't picture Ivica Olic putting one in the onion bag.
Fifty or so drunk Croatian fans sitting ten rows down and a bit closer to the Turkish section, gave the Turkish fans the bird, shouted Ustaske words, and gave the Naci salute. Turkish fans retaliated by throwing cups filled with beer. What are 50 Croatians going to do against 5000 Turkish fans. After watching a few Hooligan videos, I was afraid of a stampede. Security was quick to the scene and stood in the aisle to separate the two groups.
The venue is spectacular, gametime around sunset.
Croatian fans with balls..."Against Modern Football"
This game was more than just football. This banner was a shot at the European Union to stay out of Croatia. Also, religion and history played a major part. In the Turkish section, a Bosnian flag was seen. While in the Croatian section, a Vatican flag was waving during the entire match.
Turkey using monkey see monkey do technique
Turkish fans were chanting, "Ustaske Picke"...."Ustase Pussies" Croatian fans were chanting, "Ako san Turcin, ubija bi se." "If I am Turkish, I would kill myself."
Great free kick chance, unlucky
No goals, why we bring flairs?
Croatians are fighting for a ticket, and some clown three seats down falls asleep during extra time. Unbelieveable!
After the equalizer, the Euro was truly over for me. Flashes of World Cup 1998 Semifinal went through my head. As the whistle blew for penalty kicks, the entire stadium knew who would be victorious tonight. View of the penalty kicks
First, I would like to thank Ante for doing an exceptional job running CroatianSoccerReport.com while I am enjoying myself in Europe. I see how much work you put into this, and its safe to say that you will be reimbursed when I return my friend.
For some reason, I thought this would be easy:
1) Show up in Vienna and klagenfurt, Austria
2) Take a few pictures, video, interviews, etc
3) Post on website
However, I didn't take into consideration: finding a web cafe, enjoying myself, partying, finding a roof over my head, transportation, etc.
This was a valuable learning experience for me. I now have a better understanding of what it takes to be a reporter and writer. This is just the beginning.
I apologize to a few of you that we didn't get a chance to meet in Austria, I look forward to meeting you in the near future.
Lastly, I would like to thank everyone that has stuck with us through thick and thin. Like I said, this is just the beginning. Qualifiers for world cup 2010 are just around the corner. However, let's not by party poopers. Enjoy the rest of the Euro. There is still some great football on display.
By now you all know that I am extremely late with the 'time sensitive' information. The next post will be mighty long, so those of you that rather prefer the 'short, get to the point, quick' story, I apologize as you will have to make an effort and spend a few extra minutes on this post.
Most of you have seen every picture on google and every video on youtube. I have looked through all of my pictures and decided to post only the rare or extraordinary footage that you wont find anywhere else. However, I will also post some videos that I'm sure is watched all over the world on youtube.
CROATIA****POLAND****KLAGENFURT
We took a 6am bus from Zagreb to klagenfurt. The atmosphere on the bus was terrible, however, a third of the bus was filled with beautiful Croatian girls.
Klagenfurt was full of Croatian and Poland fans. Once again, Croatians outnumbered the opposition 3 to 1. Klagenfurt locals fled like a Frenchman from a cap gun. The media in Klagenfurt brought Austrians such fear of Polish, German, and Croatian hooligans, that most of the locals left the country on vacation or locked themselves indoors. Women received free pepper spray.
A lone Klagenfurt Croatian welcomes the crowd outside his living room window..
What do you think? Comments?
A fellow Croatiansoccerreport.com supporter from L.A. and member of 'ludi ljudi' from the Croatian soccer tournament in L.A.
This is what we play for....
'Poljakine nisu kava prema Hrvatice'
Plenty of Austrian police on hand for this nonviolent event.
Tamburica before the match.
Croatian training...
Pregame video of Thompson...
Action from Corner
Where is England? A disappointed Leeds United fan hangs his flag. I feel for the lad.. a little...
Did I fail to mention the Croatian ladies in attendance?
Croatians are pyromaniacs... Niko stretching out... Niko, Niko, Niko..
Some of the players came out to take pictures with the fans after the match..
I will leave you with a chant...
Daj nam sise da se igramooooo...igramoooo...igramooo..
translates to... give us your tits so we can play...we can play...we can play...
The women didnt find this amusing.
Last last thing.. The fans were chanting Slaven Bilic... then chanting 'javi se...javi se' which translates to 'say hello..say hello.' After thirty seconds or so, Slaven waved to the crowd, during the match.... priceless.
Croatia striker Igor Budan will miss the rest of Euro 2008 with a knee injury, coach Slaven Bilić said on Wednesday.
“He will undergo arthroscopic surgery in Italy and unfortunately he will not be able to help us for the remainder of the European Championship,” Bilić told Croatian media from team base.
“We will consider calling up a replacement but only after our quarter-final match with Turkey, should we progress to the semi-finals,” he said.
We have already lost defender Dario Knežević and midfielders Darijo Srna and Ivan Rakitić are banged up, but should be fit in time for the quarterfinal match with Turkey.
Who will replace Budan? Rukavina? Balaban? Mandžukić? Give us your thoughts.
Ladies and Gentlemen, once again, I have to apologize for not being able to deliver this time sensitive information at an earlier time. After a diet consisting of Austrian wieners and beer, luckily, I have returned to Zagreb in one piece.
In the next few paragraphs I will try to summarize what I experienced in Klagenfurt, Austria during the Croatia-Germany game.
Luka and I left Bratislava, Slovakia at 3pm local time and arrived in Klagenfurt at 10pm local time. Our first objective was to find a hotel, hostel, or anything with a roof over our heads for the night. After a few hours of searching, we ended up at our last resort: fan camp. This organized convention like center, is the last call for fans without hotel reservations. As you can see by the picture, it wasn´t Holiday Inn. Just imagine 800 sweaty, stinky, drunk Europeans under one roof!
There were plenty of pre-night parties all over the city. However, due to fear, most Klagenfurt locals booked early vacations to France and Italy. Every Austrian woman received pepper spray in case the earth was coming to an end. This was a Bonanza ghost town, not an Austrian in sight. The very few Germans that would show up, partied with us throughout the night.
On June 12th, Klagenfurt was truly Croatian for the day. For some reason, Germans were a needle in a haystack. Croatian music was playing all day and night all over the town center, stadium, and throughout Klagenfurt.
After the match, everyone made their way down to the town center to sing the night away. What an incredible achievement for a small nation, but gigantic football nation. In my opinion, this result was third all time next to Germany-Croatia world cup 1998 and Holland-Croatia World Cup 1998.
As the national anthem played, Croatians around the world were singing as one!
Croatians from all over the world; Germany, USA, Argentina, Slovenia, Australia, New Zealand, and Canada, were all on hand to support the vatreni in victory. We ended up watching the game in the town center at the fan zone. After every goal, Croatians were drenched with beer. "This is unbelievable. As a realist, I was hoping for a draw, but victory over a superpower like Germany is something that I will remember forever. We are going to the final," said Josip, a Dinamo Zagreb fan.
After a six hour train ride, Luka and I arrived in Zagreb without showering for three days, hair sticky from beer, malnourished, and fatigued. All of this just to watch Croatia play Germany with our people.
For some reason, the media is still bashing Slaven Bilić and his tactics. We should stop criticizing this genius and let him do his magic. The Poland game is pointless; win, lose or draw. Against the Czechs we will be ready, and a semifinal matchup with the Germans will be classic.
Here is a video from Vienna following the Croatia-Austria match. Tamburica was lighting up the rainy skies in front of St. Stephen's Cathedral.
We arrived to Klagenfurt the night before the game. For the most part it was pretty dead with only about a few hundred or so people out in the town center singing and dancing to Croatian music.
pregame
This morning, Croatians are rolling in by the thousands. Hundreds and maybe thousands of police from Germany, Croatia and Austria are here to make order.
A bus carrying 100s of German fans was stopped as a dozen Croatian fans laid down in the middle of the street preventing the bus to pass. Austrian police were called to the scene to beat on the Croats. A dozen helicopters are circling the rainy Klagenfurt skies.
Interviews
´´Both Croatia and Germany are very talented and great football teams, however Croatia will not beat Germany..... 2=1 Germany... Klaus from Klagenfurt`´
"The atmosphere is unbelievable. As a Croatian living in Klagenfurt, I never thought something like this was possible in a small city like Klagenfurt. Croatia didnt show up against Austria and will be ready for the elf....Croatia 2=0....." Ivan, a Croatian living in Klagenfurt, helped order us cold cuts in supermarket..
"Croatia will not lose. We are the best. Croatia only shows up against the best. 2=0 against Germany and then we lose to Poland." Mirko from Varazdin
chants
Here are some of the chants that can be heard from miles away. "bjezi te ljudi....jer ovdje igra Hrvatska".... "Deutchland, Deutchland, ...Aufedezen...Aufedezen " "U boj, U boj".... a half dozen Thompson songs..... "Mi Hrvati"..... "tj ne skoci provaslavac...hey. hey. hey."..... "ubi ubi ubi Srbina.....Srbina....ubi ubi ubi Srbinaaaaaa.."
Denis Svircic reporting from Klagenfurt for CroatianSoccerReport.com
Where should I start? Lots to say, so very little time.
First of all, I would like to apologize to all you viewers. I am uploading videos and photos as I type. Ante will have this up and running first thing in the morning.
I have ten minutes so I must type fast.
Croatia vs. Austria
The game went exactly as I expected. For some reason, I didn't comment on the outcome of the game. I remember telling my friends, 'Croatia will be up 2-0 at the half, then screw around in the second half and hang on for a 2-1 victory.' I was close.
I will summarize my experience at a later date. As far as the game went, nothing to be worried about. Germany dominated Poland so they won't be as sharp against Croatia. A tie against us and a victory over Austria and they will clinch first. As long as we don't lose against Poland we agree in for second. If we lose to Poland then Poland deserved it more.
Pictured..... A stunned reporter searching for answers
I am in Zagreb right now at an internet Cafe. Zagreb has organized 3 trains, called "fan trains" that will be full of Croats for the 6 hour train ride to Vienna on Sunday for Austraia=Croatia EURO 2008 soccer match. This I will not miss..
Keep you posted...
Tune in to
CroatianSoccerReport. com
for up to the minute videos and pictures from EURO 2008. I will try to take as many pictures and video of the train ride, pregame, game, and after game parties in and around Klagenfurt and Vienna.
When Eddie Money sang "two tickets to paradise," he was referring to this.
I will be in Austria for the first and third match, and will stop in Zagreb for the Germany match. Unfortunately, I wasn't able to pick up tickets in the Croatian block. Hopefully, i can sneak my way in somehow.
I happened to run across these on the net. Aren't they beautiful?
This will be going through my head on the flight to Europe:
Got a surprise especially for you, Something that both of us have always wanted to do. We've waited so long, waited so long. We've waited so long, waited so long.
I'm gonna take you on a trip so far from here, I've got two tickets in my pocket, now baby, we're gonna disappear. We've waited so long, waited so long. We've waited so long, waited so long.
I've got two tickets to paradise, Won't you pack your bags, we'll leave tonight, I've got two tickets to paradise, I've got two tickets to paradise.
I'm gonna take you on a trip so far from here, I've got two tickets in my pocket, now baby, we're gonna disappear. We've waited so long, waited so long. We've waited so long, waited so long.
I've got two tickets to paradise, Won't you pack your bags, we'll leave tonight, I've got two tickets to paradise, I've got two tickets to paradise.
In their last friendly before the European Championship, an uninspired Croatia drew to an energetic Hungary team in Budapest. The game wasn't televised in North America.
Niko Kovač scored off a Srna free kick in the 23rd minute. However, just before the stroke of halftime, Niko was unfortunate to receive an own goal.
Croatian international, Ognjen Vukojević, will continue to play for Dinamo next year. However, not for Dinamo Zagreb, because the Croatian champions have agreed to sell the 24 year old defensive midfielder to Dinamo Kiev for a smashing 8 million euros. Ognjen will sign a four year deal sometime next week.
"I don't have anything against the east. Why wouldn't I go there," said Ognjen late Friday night from Zagreb.
Vokojević's agent, Danka Đikić, had this to say, "I can not confirm the information, the club will have to respond."
Glasgow Celtic, last week, had offered 5 million euros for his services, however, as we all know, Dinamo is all about the $$$$. Croatian internationals, Jerko Leko and Goran Sablić, have both enjoyed stints with the Ukrainian giants.
After Modrić, Čale and most likely Koch, Vukojević will become the forth Dinamo player who will say farewell to the bad blue boys.
As all of you know by now, the final squad for Croatia has been announced long ago. Croatian has been training in Rovinj preparing for a friendly with Moldova on Saturday. Unfortunately, the game will not be televised in the United States. Even you folks that pay top dollar for Croatian satellite won't be able to see the vatreni.
ESPN has just announced the schedule for the European Championship starting June 7th.
Here are the games (all times EST)....
Round Robin Phase:
Saturday 6/07
11:50 a.m.- Switzerland vs. Czech Republic A (ESPN Classic, ESPN Deportes) 2:30 p.m.- Portugal vs. Turkey A (ESPN Classic, ESPN Deportes)
Sunday 6/08
11:50 a.m.- Austria vs. B (ESPN2, ESPN Deportes) 2:30 p.m.- Germany vs. Poland B (ESPN2, ESPN Deportes)
Monday 6/09
11:50 a.m.- Romania vs. France C (ESPN2, ESPN Deportes) 2:30 p.m.- Netherlands vs. Italy C (ESPN2, ESPN Deportes)
Tuesday 6/10
11:50 a.m.- Spain vs. Russia D (ESPN2, ESPN Deportes) 2:30 p.m.- Greece vs. Sweden D (ESPN2, ESPN Deportes)
Wednesday 6/11
11:50 a.m.- Czech Republic vs. Portugal A (ESPN2, ESPN Deportes) 2:30 p.m.- Switzerland vs. Turkey A (ESPN2, ESPN Deportes)
Thursday 6/12
11:50 a.m.- vs. Germany B (ESPN2, ESPN Deportes) 2:30 p.m.- Austria vs. Poland B (ESPN2, ESPN Deportes)
Friday 6/13
11:50 a.m.- Italy vs. Romania C (ESPN2, ESPN Deportes) 2:30 p.m.- Netherlands vs. France C (ESPN2, ESPN Deportes)
Saturday 6/14
11:50 a.m.- Sweden vs. Spain D (ESPN2, ESPN Deportes) 2:30 p.m.- Greece vs. Russia D (ESPN2, ESPN Deportes)
Sunday 6/15
2:30 p.m.- Switzerland vs. Portugal A (ESPN2, ESPN Deportes) 2:30 p.m.- Turkey vs. Czech Republic A (ESPN2, ESPN Deportes) 5 p.m.- Turkey vs. Czech Republic (ESPN Deportes)
Monday 6/16
2:30 p.m.- Poland vs. B (ESPN Classic) 2:30 p.m.- Austria vs. Germany B (ESPN, ESPN Deportes) 5 p.m.- Poland vs. (ESPN Deportes)
Tuesday 6/17
2:30 p.m.- Netherlands vs. Romania C (ESPN Classic) 2:30 p.m.- France vs. Italy C (ESPN, ESPN Deportes) 5 p.m.- Netherlands vs. Romania (ESPN Deportes)
Wednesday 6/18
2:30 p.m.- Greece vs. Spain D (ESPN, ESPN Deportes) 2:30 p.m.- Russia vs. Sweden D (ESPN2) 7 p.m.- Russia vs. Sweden (ESPN Deportes)
Quarterfinals Stage:
Thursday 6/19 2:30 p.m.- 1st Group A vs. 2nd Group B (ESPN, ESPN Deportes) Friday 6/20 2:30 p.m.- 1st Group B vs. 2nd Group A (ESPN, ESPN Deportes) Saturday 6/21 2:30 p.m.- 1st Group C vs. 2nd Group D (ABC) Sunday 6/22 2:55 p.m.- 1st Group D vs. 2nd Group C (ESPN, ESPN Deportes)
The British Sun has reported, early Thursday morning British time, that Newcastle are on the verge of signing Croatian top prospect Luka Modrić.
Newcastle United will invest £12 million for the services of the 22 year-old Croatian midfielder. As of right now, Zdravko Mamić, has confirmed talks with Newcastle and unless something comes up with in the next few days, Luka will call St. James' Park home.
As much as I would love to see Luka in a Chelsea, Barcelona or Arsenal kit; because of a sub par midfield, Newcastle would fit Luka like a glove. Most importantly, I am sick of this soap opera surrounding Luka Modrić. Hopefully a contract is finalized within the next few days.
We will keep you posted with any further developments.
Schalke are through to the quarter-finals for the first time in their history after a dramatic penalty shoot-out victory over Porto.
In the twenty first minute of overtime, Schalke replaced Grossmüller with Ivan Rakitić. As the game progressed into penalty kicks, there wasn't any question of who will lineup for the royal blues. With the second penalty kick, our very own, Rakitić calmly side-footed the ball in to Helton's left, sending the goalkeeper the wrong way.
(Rakitić pictured in the mid-right after the shoot-out)
Croatian newspaper Jutarnji List reports that the Croatian Football Federation President, Vlatko Marković will reward every Croatian player € 300,000 if they come home champions from EURO 2008.
This is great, however, if I had the privilege to wear the checkers, pride would motivate me more than a few bucks.
Here's an idea. Why not offer €250,000 in every players name to build new soccer fields around Croatia. Not only will the players be national heroes by bringing home the silverware, but every player will have a field named after them.
We are looking for fellow Vatreni fans to join us in Austria.
Please let us know if you plan to be in Austria this summer to watch some Croatian soccer. We can always get together at a local kafić to grab a beer and play some Briškule.
