Croatia It was one of the teams that arrived at this World Handball with the weight of fighting for the title. The surprise defeat against Argentina left him on the brink of elimination and generated an earthquake: the coach Lino Cervar resigned from his position seconds after the fall during a television interview from the field of play.
“Nobody is happy to lose. Today we do not play well. I am very surprised. I was hoping we were okay. It is a disappointment. I have to take responsibility whatever happens. It is inadmissible for me. I think someone better replace me, I’m not ready to go any further. I gave a lot of commitment. I led the national team in 250 appearances ”, the 70-year-old coach who commanded Croatia between 2002 and 2010 shot before the television cameras, to resume the position in 2017 again.
The news is a bucket of cold water for a team that in 2020 was European runner-up after falling in the final against Spain by 22-20. In this World Cup they equalized with Japan (29-29), beat Angola (20-28), prevailed over Qatar (26-24), triumphed over Bahrain (28-18) and received an unexpected fall against Argentina (23 -19). “I’m sorry to leave like this, but the decision is final. Let it be a message for those who will come, I will support the new coach and the national team, but I don’t think it should have been played like that”, He assured before the cameras of the station RTL.
The striking thing about the case is that the Croats still have a chance to stay in the tournament if they beat Denmark on Monday and Argentina don’t beat Qatar. The winners of the four zones will qualify for the quarterfinals where Hungary and Spain already are. Cervar, however, clarified that he will be present at that meeting but will not guide the squad in the Olympic Games or in subsequent competitions.
“The national team was created 20 years ago to fight for every ball, I am the first to carry the responsibility and I do not escape from it. I will not think about this decision, I have always maintained high standards. A new man should take over the national team”, Cervar insisted in statements replicated by local media N1 and Click.
The Croats were the only world champions in this discipline in 2003 after beating Germany in the final. Who was the coach? Linen Cervar. He was also the architect of the world runner-up in the 2005 World Cup. “A team cannot play such an important game like this. That disappointed me. I’m not mad at anyone, I don’t blame anyone. I assume my part of responsibility, I need to be replaced after the World Cup ”, he declared.
Argentina made history in the Handball World Cup: The Gladiators defeated Croatia and were one step away from the quarterfinals
Add Comment