“We are up against the wall and we need a result from the game between Nigeria and Argentina but it’s all about us now. Hallgrímsson’s team were poor in the second half against Nigeria and the game got away from them but they had been decent enough in the first half and resilient over the 90 minutes of the 1-1 draw with Argentina in their opening tie.“Beating Croatia gives us belief and our players deserve a lot of praise for finishing above them in qualification,” Hallgrímsson said. After a 2-0 defeat in Croatia, they beat them 1-0 at home in June of last year. They had faced Croatia in qualifying for the 20 World Cups – they lost a two-legged play-off to them in 2014 and two group matches in 2006 – but this time, they could finally claim to have found the upper hand. Iceland have built a hardy mentality over recent years, which was in glorious evidence at Euro 2016, when they reached the quarter-finals having knocked out England, and Hallgrímsson says they have nothing to fear against Croatia, whom they finished above in qualification. This is their chance, so we will have a group of really motivated players coming in.” Now it’s players who want to punch themselves in to play the last 16.
“The Croatia players who played the first two games could be demotivated – thinking about getting injured or yellow cards. “It’s strange to say but it would be a disadvantage for us if they rested players,” Hallgrímsson said. Hallgrímsson’s opposite number, Zlatko Dalic, has six players on yellow cards, including Ivan Rakitic and Mario Mandzukic, and he is expected to rest them all – together with his other leading lights, Dejan Lovren and Luka Modric. Hallgrímsson is convinced qualification is on and not because Croatia, who are already assured of their last-16 place, are set to make wholesale changes. A Nigeria victory would send Iceland and Argentina home. Iceland did lose the last one – 2-0 to Nigeria – and they now know they have to beat Croatia on Tuesday, hope that Nigeria fail to win against Argentina and also earn themselves a better goal difference than Nigeria or Argentina to advance from Group D.
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