Croatia arrived at Euro 2024 with many admirers but were left frustrated as they opened up their Group B account with a 3-0 defeat to Spain in which they struggled in front of goal.
By Nathan Evans
Despite becoming the first side in 136 competitive matches (since the final of Euro 2008!) to hold more possession than Spain in a game, Zlatko Dalić’s side were frustratingly lacklustre in attack as they were carved open by their opposition with ruthless efficiency at the other end of the pitch.
The scoreline will have come as a shock for Croatian fans, who prior to this summer’s tournament had seen their side win six internationals in succession, a run that was bookended by an impressive 2-1 win over Portugal in their final warm-up outing.
Those six matches had also seen Luka Modrić’s side concede just three goals in total, so a massive reset in terms of personnel or tactical changes ahead of this must win match versus Albania should not be expected.
Instead, only small tweaks are likely to be seen, as in truth, Croatia should still get the better of their opposition in this outing, even despite their woeful performance on matchday one.
With no prior head-to-head results as this is the first competitive match between the two sides, a look at the Croats recent results against similar ranked nations could instead provide plenty of positivity for Dalić’s side.
Not since a 1-0 defeat to Iceland all the way back in June 2017 have Croatia been defeated by a side lower in the current FIFA rankings than Albania, who occupy 66th spot at present. Since then, Croatia have spent much of their time well within the top ten ranked sides in international football and have enjoyed massive success at major tournaments even in spite of their small population.
That’s a good omen then ahead of this match, as too is the fact that not since Euro 1996 have they lost back-to-back matches at the same major tournament.
Albania did show fight, spirit and plenty of quality in their opener against Italy though which will come as concern for their much favoured opposition. In that match, Nedim Bajrami struck the fastest goal in European Championship history after just 23 seconds but ultimately, Italy’s overall quality proved too much for the Balkan state.
A response is now needed as another defeat here would likely signal the end of their Euro 2024 journey, and finding the same form that saw them score exactly three goals in both of their final two warm-up friendlies could go a long way to remedying their situation.
That being said, Albania haven’t beaten a nation inside of FIFA’s current top ten since a 1-0 friendly victory over France in June 2015, and although they’ll still be confident of causing an upset here, this match against Croatia could prove a bridge too far for Sylvinho and his team.
(Cover image from IMAGO)
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