ZAGREB, May 5 (Reuters) - Croatia coach Slaven Bilic named a 23-man squad for Euro 2008 with few surprises but only six defenders after extending his contract with the country's Football Association until 2010 on Monday.
'Two years ago, it was a brave decision to put us at the
helm and we have decided to stay on because we have a lot of
confidence in this youthful team,' Bilic told a news conference.
'There is absolutely no pressure but our primary objective
is to get past the group stage at Euro 2008,' he said.
Bilic included only six defenders but some of his nine
midfielders, notably Danijel Pranjic and Darijo Srna, are
versatile wing backs who can play in several positions.
He dropped Dinamo Zagreb's out-of-form striker Bosko Balaban
in favour of 20-year old prospect Nikola Kalinic, who has had a
fine season with their traditional rivals Hajduk Split.
Mario Mandzukic and Werder Bremen midfielder Jurica Vranjes
made way for the utility duo of Ognjen Vukojevic and Nikola
Pokrivac in the centre of midfield while Anas Sharbini and
Manuel Pamic are the two back-up players.
'This team has a lot of potential and it will get even
better in the future. With a bit of luck we can do very well in
the European Championship,' Bilic said.
Croatia open their campaign against Austria in Vienna on
June 8 and play their remaining Group B matches in Klagenfurt
against Germany on June 12 and Poland four days later.
Squad:
Goalkeepers: Stipe Pletikosa (Spartak Moscow), Vedran Runje
(RC Lens), Mario Galinovic (Panathinaikos)
Defenders: Vedran Corluka (Manchester City), Dario Simic (AC
Milan), Robert Kovac (Borussia Dortmund), Josip Simunic (Hertha
Berlin), Dario Knezevic (Livorno), Hrvoje Vejic (Tom Tomsk)
Midfielders: Danijel Pranjic (Heerenveen), Darijo Srna
(Shakhtar Donetsk), Niko Kovac (Salzburg), Luka Modric (Dinamo
Zagreb/Tottenham), Niko Kranjcar (Portsmouth), Jerko Leko
(Monaco), Ivan Rakitic (Schalke 04), Ognjen Vukojevic (Dinamo
Zagreb), Nikola Pokrivac (Monaco)
Forwards: Mladen Petric (Borussia Dortmund), Ivica Olic
(Hamburg SV), Ivan Klasnic (Werder Bremen), Igor Budan (Parma),
Nikola Kalinic (Hajduk Split)
