Croatia prepared for friendly fire in Sweden

Croatia’s friendly with Sweden tonight will be a good rehearsal for their Euro 2012 opener against the Republic of Ireland, coach Slaven Bilic claimed yesterday.

“The Swedes are not identical to Ireland but they have many things in common, namely a vertically aggressive attacking style,” Bilic said.

“Both teams are very good at set pieces and win most aerial battles against their opponents, meaning that we will have to match them every step of the way in terms of endurance, commitment and discipline. If we can do that, our individual quality should make the difference,” said Bilic, who steered Croatia to the Euro 2008 quarter-finals. The Croatians, who face Ireland in Poznan on June 10, were seconds away from reaching the Euro 2008 semi-finals, having led 1-0 before Turkey equalised with the last kick of extra-time and went on to win the penalty shoot-out.