Croatia Talks Good Game but Will Have to Play One vs. Mexico to Advance
RECIFE, Brazil — Luka Modric heaped superlatives upon the Mexican team. Then he said his Croatian team was better in every way.
“It is sportsmanlike to believe you are going to win — and that belief, our desire, has foundation,” Modric, a midfielder, said Sunday during a news conference at Arena Pernambuco.
The teams meet for a critical Group A game here Monday afternoon. Croatia (3 points) is guaranteed to qualify for the next round with a victory. Mexico (4 points) can ensure advancement with a win or a draw.
Both teams have backdoor paths into the next round, but those would come into play only if Brazil (4 points) were to lose to Cameroon in a concurrent game. That all gives the Croatia-Mexico game the feel of a knockout contest.
“I think that we are a better team, and better individuals, than Mexico and that we will show that tomorrow,” Modric said. “I think it is a good thing that we have to play to win.”
Mexico has continued to thrive under Coach Miguel Herrera, who was hired last October. Mexico beat Cameroon and tied Brazil, and it is one of two teams in the World Cup that has not conceded a goal after two games (the other is Nigeria).
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Organizing things in the middle of Mexico’s defensive line has been the captain, Rafael Márquez, who is in his fourth World Cup. Márquez was on the field the last time the two countries met, in the 2002 World Cup.
So was Croatia’s current coach, Niko Kovac, who said he remembered all the details of that 1-0 win for Mexico.
“Even back then, he was the leader of that team, as he is today,” Kovac said of Márquez. Of Mexico, Kovac added, “We have a recipe for them.”
Croatia needs to score and has not had too much trouble doing so. Modric has helped lead a dynamic Croatian attack while working in tandem in the midfield with Ivan Rakitic. And striker Mario Mandzukic looked dangerous scoring two goals in the team’s last game, a 4-0 win over Cameroon.
Modric said he had faith in Mandzukic and added that it hardly mattered that Guillermo Ochoa, Mexico’s goalkeeper, was coming off a sensational performance in a 0-0 tie against Brazil.
“With all due respect to Ochoa, he’s scored against even better goalkeepers,” Modric said of Mandzukic. “The fact that they have not conceded speaks volumes about their quality. But I’m sure we will find a way to score.”
RIPE FOR FIXING According to FIFA’s chief of security, Ralf Mutschke, the conditions exist to make Monday’s Group A game between Brazil and Cameroon in Brasília vulnerable to match fixing.
Mutschke explained that with Cameroon already eliminated from second-round consideration, and with organized crime figures theoretically looking to affect the outcome of the game for gambling purposes — including the number of goals allowed by Cameroon — FIFA would need to be vigilant.
Cameroon Coach Volker Finke guaranteed that his players would make every effort to beat Brazil, which needs only a draw to advance.
“I have never heard anything about this topic,” Finke said. “I know my team, and it is out of the question. I find it completely impossible that the players would give away the match. Don’t worry about that at all.”
Brazil Coach Luiz Felipe Scolari said that Brazil would be fighting hard for a draw or a win to advance and that he believed that Cameroon would be playing hard for its honor.
“I don’t admit when people say they have nothing to lose or talking about fixed results,” Scolari said. “This is a lack of respect towards the Cameroon team, not against Brazil, but towards the Cameroon team.”
Cameroon enters the game in disarray, with losses to Mexico and Croatia in its first two games, players fighting on the field and its biggest star, Samuel Eto’o, dealing with a knee injury. Finke said Eto’o would not start but might come off the bench. He also said that Eto’o, 33, was not planning to retire from international soccer.
“He wants to play for two, three, maybe even four more years,
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