Luka Modric’s stunning goal helped Croatia beat Turkey 1-0 in their opening Euro 2016 match at the Parc des Princes.
Advertisement
Just as he does for Real Madrid, Modric was at the heart of everything good that Croatia did, somehow always half a step ahead of everyone else on the pitch. We have two more games to play and we’ll do our best, we’ll keep fighting.
In the first Euro 2016 match after violence Saturday at the game between Russian Federation and England in Marseille, a fan in a Croatia shirt jumped from the stands to join the players while they were celebrating the goal.
If you’ve caught any of the major tournaments over the last eight years, you’ll be familiar with Croatia’s stars – names like Luka Modric, Ivan Rakitic and Dario Srna.
There were three minutes left of the first half when Ivan Rakitic swung in a cross from the left which Selcuk Inan volley away. No danger In the end Modric did make the difference, with a freakish yet attractive goal just before half time.
While Fatih Terim’s Turkey now have it all to do ahead of their meeting with defending champions Spain in Nice on Friday, Croatia will go into their game against the Czech Republic with one eye on the last 16, although Modric says it would be unsafe to look too far ahead. “We must continue in the same vein, and I believe we will get another good result”. “The atmosphere in the team, even before the match, was great”, he said.
Prior to Modric’s superb 41st-minute strike, despite being on the back foot for most of the game, Turkey had the best opportunity to take the lead.
“We played well. Again it was a hard game as it was in all our games against Turkey in the past”. In the 72nd munite, Perisic hits the bar with a header from six yards out.
Turkey had their best chance in the first half when Ozan Tufan’s header from close range was blocked on his line by Danijel Subasic.
“We are definitely in the hardest group, with Spain, so it is a ideal start to get three points”, said Barcelona midfielder Ivan Rakitic.
They did produce one scare for the Croatian defence right at the end but there was a timely block from Vedran Corluka, who was wearing a white bandage that evoked shades of former England defender Terry Butcher after suffering a cut to his head from a stray elbow in the first half.
“I thought that we would have more possession”. “We need Luka in this form because the team looks different, it looks better”.
Advertisement
“We never start well in these big tournaments”, said Terim, who coached Turkey 20 years ago and to the semifinals of Euro2008. “We have two important matches in front, starting with the Czech Republic, who are tough, unpredictable”.
