Stanišić: “We can be proud of how we played in the second half”

“We are disappointed to be out of the tournament. We got better with every game. We won two matches in the group stage, and against Portugal we knew what a difficult challenge awaited us. That was evident in the first half, but because of the way we played in the second half, we can only be proud.”

On luck...

“After going 1-0 up and even after it became 1-1, I felt that we were the better team and that we had a chance to go through. We just needed a little more luck. We scored three goals that were ruled out for offside. What can you say? We simply didn't have the luck we had at previous World Cups, and that's why we're going home.”

On the goal Croatia conceded...

“I haven't watched the replay yet. I knew Leao could deliver a cross, but I couldn't step out too aggressively because he could have beaten me and gone down the line. Maybe I was standing a little too far away, but I expected us to win the aerial duel. When I saw the ball going into the penalty area, between Pongračić and Gvardiol, I thought one of them would get to it. Unfortunately, that didn't happen.”

On the fine margins that decide matches...

“It's not my place to blame anyone. Especially because Marin and Šutalo played a fantastic match against a team with world-class attacking players. These are the small details that decide games in the end, and this time they weren't on our side. What did the coach tell us after the match? That we can be proud of ourselves. It's difficult for everyone. We are all disappointed and emotionally drained because we felt we had a real chance to go through.”

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