Croatia's coach Zlatko Dalic stated that "reaching the semifinals of the UEFA Nations League is a significant achievement for his team, despite finishing the last two World Cups in second and third places respectively." Dalic remarked at a press conference on Tuesday, "We faced challenges in the first two editions of the Nations League. However, we achieved good results by defeating France and Denmark in the group stage to top the group and reach the final stage. We want to give our best and have the chance to achieve another good result. We have the potential to do that."
Team captain Luka Modric confirmed that "facing the Netherlands will be extremely difficult. We are up against a young team with a group of talents that has started to return to major competitions and is playing at home."
Modric declined to comment on his future with Real Madrid, where his contract ends at the end of the season, which may lead to him leaving the team after 11 years.
Croatia finished in second place in the 2018 World Cup in Russia. Less than two months later, in the first edition of the Nations League, they lost 6-0 to Spain and finished behind Spain and England in the group.
