Croatia conclude Euro qualifying campaign with victory over Lithuania

Having already secured their place among the 16 best teams, Croatia travelled to Druskininkai without pressure and defeated their Lithuanian counterparts 1:0.

The only goal of the match was scored by Ivan Canjuga in the 27th minute. The Varaždin forward converted from the penalty spot after being brought down from behind by Nikita Pavlovskij. It was Canjuga's first goal in his seventh appearance for Croatia's Under-21 national team.

“I am glad that we secured qualification and won the match, and that I was able to help the team to victory. I am sorry that we did not take some of our chances because we were the much better team. We can't wait for the European Championship and hope to achieve the best possible result,” said Canjuga.

Croatia had several great chances to extend their lead in the second half.

In the 43rd minute, Bukvić found Canjuga inside the penalty area on the counter-attack. The Varaždin forward created space for a shot, but a Lithuanian defender blocked his effort.

In the 63rd minute, Jagušić combined with Canjuga, who returned the ball to him, and the Croatian midfielder then tried from around 20 metres. His effort was deflected behind for a corner by the Lithuanian defence.

Segečić had a great chance in the 71st minute. After a one-two, he broke down the left flank and shot towards the near post, but the ball went wide.

Just seven minutes later, Bukvić played a superb pass to Zvonarek, who found himself unmarked around 16 metres from goal, but his effort went over the crossbar.

Segečić had another great chance in the 81st minute. He found himself one-on-one with the Lithuanian goalkeeper but shot wide.

A minute later, Topić also found himself in a promising position. He went one-on-one with Voltinovičius and tried to round him, but the Lithuanian goalkeeper managed to clear the ball at the last moment.

In the 89th minute, Zvonarek tried to threaten the Lithuanian goal. He cut onto his right foot and unleashed a powerful shot, but the ball went wide.

Croatia finished the qualifying campaign top of Group H with 19 points, recording six wins, one draw and one defeat in eight matches. Turkey finished second with 13 points, Ukraine were third with 12, Hungary fourth with seven, while Lithuania finished bottom with two points.

Final tournament draw on 26 November

The draw for the UEFA European Under-21 Championship final tournament will be held on 26 November in Belgrade.

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