Bilic says Road open to quarterfinals

Croatia coach Slaven Bilic lauded his team on Sunday for its 3-1 victory over Ireland, saying it had opened to road to the quarterfinals, though he conceded that going further at Euro 2012 could be tough.

"Tonight we showed that we can play," Bilic said.

"Maybe the Irish were the better team in some moments, but I think that if you look, the overall impression is that we were the much better team.

"We are strong as a team, and I think that after this match we are getting even better and even stronger. I expect to play even better against Italy because the first match is the most difficult, and this is behind us."

Bilic underlined that both teams had gone into the match fully aware that they had to perform well.

"I'm sorry for the Irish. They were looking for a chance in this match. But it was the same for us," he said.

"We have three points, and we're top of the group.

"One win would be enough to go to the quarterfinals."

"We cannot fly in the championship, but let's go step by step. We respect all our opponents. We have no fear against anyone. Spain and Italy are favorites in our group, but I still think we are able to beat one of them."

Wolfsburg's Mario Mandzukic scored a double in the Ireland game.

His first goal came in the third minute to make it 1-0 and the second after the break to take the score to 3-1.

AFP

(China Daily 06/12/2012 page22)