Croatia coach Zlatko Dalic criticised the refereeing after his side’s 2-1 defeat to Portugal in the FIFA World Cup Round of 32 on Thursday, but insisted he was not using it as an excuse for the loss.
Portugal came from behind to win after Cristiano Ronaldo converted a penalty, awarded following a VAR review, before Goncalo Ramos scored the winner in stoppage time.
Croatia thought they had forced extra time when Josko Gvardiol found the net late in added time. However, VAR showed the ball had touched Igor Matanovic before reaching Gvardiol, leaving him offside and the goal was disallowed.
“It was very bad refereeing,” Dalic told reporters, saying he believed Croatia should have been awarded more free kicks.
“But Croatia lost. I’m not going to find any excuses,” the 59-year-old added. “We could have won this earlier.”
Dalic admitted Croatia were below their best in the first half but felt they improved after the break. In the end, he said, the team could not repeat the success they enjoyed in the previous two World Cups.
Croatia finished runners-up in 2018 and claimed third place in 2022, but this time they bowed out without a medal.
The defeat also likely marked the end of Luka Modric’s World Cup career. The 40-year-old captain, who has been the driving force behind Croatia’s golden generation, may have played his final match at football’s biggest tournament.
“Well, this was probably his last World Cup,” Dalic said about Modric. “And I’m sorry that it ended this way.”
Despite the disappointing exit, Dalic believes Croatia have a bright future with a new generation of players ready to step up.
“I’m not afraid for the future of the Croatian team,” Dalic added. “We have a lot of young players coming in and some of them have shown the quality today.
“We’ve come to an end of a wonderful era,” he added. “And some new beginnings await us.”
When asked about his own future, Dalic, who has been Croatia’s head coach since 2017, did not give a clear answer.
“God knows what will happen in the next World Cup, but we’ll talk about it in Croatia,” he said.
