Metlicic: Croatia Is The Favourite At Home

The players agree that the audience did great and in the end it is the main backbone for the match against France.

ZAGREB, CROATIA – As the match which will most probably take host Croatia into the semi-finals of the World Handball Championship, impressions of the players were fresh and they headed out for the locker room with a smile on their faces, singing their signature song “Morska vila” at the top of their voice, like they do after every victory.

“Lads start playing well very quickly before this audience”

Croatia beat the Hungarians with a five-point difference, while the French defeated the Swedes with a seven-goal advantage, thus everyone sees us and the French in the final match on February 1. The hosts are not running away from such an outcome or the scenario in which they are the winners.

- Well, we are playing in front of 15,000 people on home court. You be the judge of what we can do and what we are capable of, the facts speak for themselves - Croatia’s first goalkeeper Mirko Alilovic was mysterious, pointing out the excellent French are nothing to worry about, because “the lads start playing well very quickly before this audience”.

Everyone wanted to know what should be done against the French, who will not allow the players to be nonchalant, as they were against the Hungarians, but captain Petar Metlicic is not the captain for no reason:

- The Swedes are still young and are prone to oscillations. It is true that the French played excellent, but Sweden is not as bad as the result suggested. Our encounter will reveal many things, and we are the absolute favourite in front of this audience – captain Metlicic said, who was more than excellent in Saturday`s match against Hungary.

“I forget about fatigue when I hear the noise from the stands”

Ivan Cupic was also talkative, the Croatian engine, the wing which has grown into a world class player and won over the trust of coach Lino Cervar, who let him play the entire match, which is why Cupic felt fatigue.

- I wouldn`t want to get involved, ask the coach why I played the entire match. I am tired, but when I hear the cheering, I forget about fatigue and my only desire is to play an excellent match and win together with my team – Cupic was great in his statement, just as in his game.

Although the defence was rocky, the lads seem full of self-confidence and nobody, not even the French cannot claim that Croatia is not the champion`s favourite.

PHOTO: Only A Miracle Can Take Semis From Croatia