All-around center

With the return of Croatian internationals, the national team training center has become lively.

The entire training center is also brand new, with updated training equipment and re-laid lawns.

The renovation of the lawn of the national team training center dates back to the 1990s during the Davor Suker period. With their outstanding performance in the World Cup, the relevant departments and equipment of the national team were collectively replaced.

Now, with Suker and others further demonstrating their strong combat effectiveness, football has become an extremely important part of Croatia's external cultural output, and daily training equipment naturally needs to follow up.

It feels different to step on the brand new lawn.

The overall quality of the lawn is very good. It should be laid according to the highest professional lawn standards in Europe. There are also many more staff in the entire national team training center.

In particular, the daily care of the lawn requires special personnel.

Besic gave a speech on the brand new lawn, still with the same set of words, without much intention, but the players focused more on Artgenic behind Besic.

Arteganic smiled, and Suker and other players were blinking at him, as a greeting.

As the key person who brought Suker and other players to Dinamo Zagreb, he had a good relationship with these players.

"One last thing." Besic slightly turned his body, and Arteganic took a step forward.

"I think you are not unfamiliar with it. Arteganic officially joins the coaching team from today, mainly responsible for information collection and analysis."

After that, Besic nodded to Arteganic, who took a deep breath and said loudly:

"I am very happy to work in the national team. The Croatian national team is now a top team in the world. Working in such a team is a bit stressful for me, but I will definitely overcome these pressures and show my best work performance. At the same time, I also hope that the players will trust me and let us set off towards a greater goal together!"

Finally, Arteganic smiled and said; "Long time no see!"

As soon as the voice fell, Suker and others rushed up immediately with a sound of rushing.

Duimovic, Vukojevic, Modric and others held Artgenic's limbs and threw him high in the air amid his terrified voice.

At the same time, the players cheered loudly:

"Wright, welcome to join us!"

Everyone was playing together, and the other coaching staff members looked at Artgenic with some envy.

They did not have such treatment when they joined the coaching staff.

However, they also understood that Artgenic had a close relationship with this group of players, so they did not have many ideas.

At the same time, they also felt that this atmosphere was really good.

After the welcome ceremony, they went directly into the training camp.

Besic still followed the original process and took the lead in some physical examinations.

He had to understand the physical condition of the players. Although these guys said that there was no problem, some hidden dangers still existed.

Therefore, before the training camp started, he took all the players to the hospital for physical examinations.

Such a test took an afternoon, almost using up the training time on the first day.

The players who completed the physical examination first returned to the training base to train on their own.

Suker and others were the first to finish, so they returned to the training base.

They did not have any intense training, but ran around the court, chatting while running.

"Have you heard?" Dujmovic said mysteriously: "Simunic went to see the coach alone!"

Everyone turned their heads.

"Where did you get the news?"

Dujmovic: "This news is easy to get. The coaching staff has spread it. I also heard it by accident."

Modric nodded; "Simunic is still playing in the local league, right? Which team is he in now?"

"Varaždin!" Planic said.

Suker turned his head: "Promoted? How come I haven't heard of it?"

Pranjic: "Promoted in 2008, and still in the local top league until now. The overall level is good, but it's hard to go further!"

Suker nodded: "How is Simunic's performance?"

Pranjic; "The state is a bit up and down. When it's good, anyone can defend it. When it's bad, it's a bit criminal."

Modric grinned: "Don't you have a good defensive midfielder?"

Simunic relies heavily on an excellent defensive midfielder for support, and also needs a faster player to make up for his slow turn.

Of course, most of the time, he is the one who lags behind, but he can't withstand the opponent's quick counterattack.

"See how to use it!" Planjic; "He is very good at competing for the top. After all, he is tall, and he has a very accurate judgment of the landing point and sufficient experience. But once he enters the chaos, he is a little overwhelmed and can be easily passed!"

Suker, Planjic, Srna, Modric and other players formed the first echelon, running and chatting.

Behind them, Vida, Strinic, Perisic and others were the second echelon.

They had almost no say among these big guys, so they didn't interrupt and just listened quietly.

However, listening to their chat, Vida, Lovren and others were a little wary.

Simunić was their previous starting central defender and also the former captain of the Croatian national team.

Although he is older now, after the last European Cup, they completely took away his starting position and also lost the opportunity to enter the national team.

But that doesn’t mean it’s confirmed!

Kovac has made it clear that he will retire from the national team and is now basically in a semi-retired state.

But Simunic is different!

He still wants to play in another World Cup and works very hard for this.

With the World Cup as the premise, it is not new for the coaching staff to summon some experienced veterans.

It can even be said that if something unexpected happens, such as Vida or Lovren being injured and missing the World Cup, these veterans will be the first choice to take over the national team's place.

Lovren lightly nudged Vader with his elbow. The latter turned his head and looked over. Lovren pursed his lips to the side.

The two quietly left the team.

When he reached the corner of the court, Lovren asked: "Do you think Simunic can return?"

"I don't know." Vader shook his head: "But it's not impossible!"

Lovren thought for a while; "The coaching staff won't break up our partnership, right?"

Vader: "Probably not, I feel like I performed well."

Currently, Vida has become a very reliable central defender at Manchester United.

Although he failed to completely replace Ferdinand's position, he has gradually begun to exert his strength.

However, Vader also has a problem, that is, his judgment of the landing point is not particularly accurate.

He himself does not have the absolute height of Simunic, so he is in a passive state when his judgment of the landing point is insufficient.

In addition, Lovren is not a top-fighting player, which is why they almost overturned in the last round.

Vader felt a little anxious.

The reason is that the coaching staff clearly intends to increase the defensive strength in the air, and he has nothing to say about it.

Once Simunic returns to the team, his position will inevitably be affected.

"Let's find Rakitic or Luka and practice judging the placement."

Lovren suggested.

If he was given a choice, he would be more willing to cooperate with Vida. After all, the two of them are already central defender partners and have formed a tacit understanding.

Moreover, Lovren doesn’t particularly like Simunic.

The reason is also very simple. When he first entered the national team, he was made a lot of excessive jokes by Simunic.

The two did what they said, and at the end of the training camp that day, they found Rakitic.

However, Rakitic found an excuse and left.

Finally they found Modric, who was still willing to help.

"Judge the landing point?"

Su Ke heard their conversation from the side and walked over: "No one is competing with you, how can you judge!"

After that, Suk reached out his hand, hooked his arms around the necks of Vader and Lovren, and walked directly towards the penalty area.

"Vida fights for one point, Lovren fights for two points!"

Su Ke grinned and said, "Today's mission was successful and destroyed ten times!"

Vader and Lovren were immediately full of energy.

Su Ke is willing to help, which is definitely a good thing.

But the next second, Suk turned around and shouted: "Mario, come here and fight for the top!"

Mandzukic was about to leave the field, turned around and glared: "Why? You can go alone!"

Suker scolded back; "You were stupid when you were playing at Bayern. You even forgot to fight for the top. I want you to review the fight for the top. What nonsense are you talking about? You don't want to score goals?"

Mandzukic's eyes lit up; "Are you willing to pass the ball to me?"

Su Ke snorted; "Have you not looked at my assist data this season?"

"Okay!" Mandzukic ran over in a hurry.

Not only Mandzukic, but Perisic and Kranica all ran over, and even Rakitic, who had originally left, came back shamelessly.

Su Ke wants to pass the ball and assist.

I can’t resist this temptation!

If he doesn't hone his coordination at this time, when someone else scores a goal, he will only have to look at it, which will be really uncomfortable.

It was originally a training session for four people, but it suddenly became lively.

Besic watched the scene through the window in his office and couldn't help but smile.

This is the effect he wants, to use the old to drive new people.

Su Ke and others will not be stingy with this time. After all, for them, their biggest wish is the World Cup.

The 2014 World Cup will be different for Croatia as a whole, including its players and fans.

They have broken away from the dark horse ranks and become the top team in the entire world.

At the very least, in Suker's era, they are the top.

Almost all positions are extremely strong, and they are definitely the seeded team to win the World Cup.

Therefore, they will also want their teammates to be stronger. Only in this way can they achieve their goals faster.

Besic pulled down the curtains, turned to the gathered coaching staff and said, "It's our job now. We must win the next game."

Besic's voice was serious.

Their next European World Cup qualifier is an away game against Belgium.

As long as they win this game, they can get a spot in the World Cup in advance, so they can't afford to lose.

The five consecutive days of training are all about running in. The players have different playing styles in their respective teams, so when they return to the national team, they all need to adapt to their new jobs.

This takes some getting used to.

Fortunately, most of the players are very focused on training, so the effect is also very good.

On October 9, the entire Croatian team set off for Belgium under the attention of many media and fans.

Belgium is a Western European country, bordering France and the Netherlands in the north and south, so it has formed a unique regional division and a chaotic language system.

The southern region is dominated by French, and the northern region is dominated by Dutch.

The capital of Belgium is a bilingual region, and the language difference has also led to the whole country being in a state of bulk.

The contradiction between the north and the south is getting worse.

The root cause of the internal strife in Belgium also lies here.

After all, a country speaks two languages, and some players can't understand what their teammates say, so communication is a problem.

Coupled with the inherent contradictions between the north and the south, no one is willing to accommodate anyone, so naturally they are strangers, and there is no cooperation to speak of.

Belgium also attaches great importance to this game!

This is their last chance!

Only if they win Croatia at home, they will have a chance to compete for the hope of the first place in the group.

The key is "hope".

Because Croatia must lose two games in a row!

Although this is not likely to happen, they have to try.

After all, if they can avoid playing in the play-offs, they will not play, which will greatly reduce their competition pressure.

But it should be a problem with Croatia.

As the champion of the 2012 European Cup, Croatia is definitely the strongest team in Europe and even the world.

There are strong players in all positions, and there are almost no flaws in the front, middle and back fields, so it is difficult to make a breakthrough.

Hazard is very irritable.

He was just beaten up by Real Madrid led by Suker in the club, and now he has to face Suker again in the national team game.

And compared to the club, Belgium will not give him so many tactical resources at present.

This is completely different from the situation in Croatia where Suker is the leader.

At least, Hazard has not reached Suker's status, so that everyone in the Belgian national team can be convinced of him.

"I need more tactical resources for tomorrow's game. If you pass the ball to me, I can score a goal."

In the Belgian locker room, Hazard said to his teammates.

He naturally calmed these players with his status as a Chelsea thigh, but some people ignored him.

That is the players mainly composed of De Bruyne and Vertonghen.

De Bruyne pretended not to hear and turned away.

If it was in the past, Hazard would not care, but the situation is different now. If he wants to win, he must get the help of De Bruyne.

"Hey! Can't you hear what I said?" Hazard's tone was very stiff.

De Bruyne turned his head: "This is not an attitude of asking people to pass the ball. I am your teammate, not your slave. You have no right to order me to do anything!"

"If you don't pass the ball to me, we can't win the game!" Hazard squinted his eyes.

De Bruyne smiled: "Are you overestimating yourself? Why can't we win the game if I don't pass the ball to you? Do you really think you are Suker?"

This sentence completely broke Hazard's defense.

"Asshole, explain me clearly!"

"My meaning is very simple. If you want me to pass the ball, you can, but your attitude should be better. Don't fucking think that you are the boss here. You are a piece of shit!"

Hazard rushed forward, but was held back.

Lukaku grabbed Hazard anxiously.

On the other side, Vertonghen also grabbed De Bruyne.

Hazard looked like he was going to beat someone up, but De Bruyne was not afraid and shouted loudly:

"You are a piece of shit! Why do you order me? You are not Suker, you are not as good as Suker, you don't even have a Golden Ball, don't fucking compare yourself to Suker! You are fucking unworthy!"

"Are you good at dribbling?" De Bruyne sneered: "Look back at that game, what is your success rate of passing, and then look at Suker's success rate! You are a piece of shit! Show me some fucking respect! Asshole!"

Hazard was shaking with anger.

Lukaku felt that he could not hold back any longer, so he turned his head and shouted, "Cover Kevin's mouth!"

"Wuwuwu let me speak! Let me. Wuwuwu~~~"

De Bruyne was pulled out of the locker room by Vertonghen, and the conflict was declared over.

However, Hazard's expression was extremely gloomy.

In this conflict, De Bruyne almost made the conflict public, and this also lost Hazard's face and prestige in the national team, which was also a point of anger.

He wanted to be the boss of the national team, but it was not easy.

At least, De Bruyne and other Flemish people in the Dutch-speaking area did not obey him!

After Lukaku appeased Hazard, he seemed particularly helpless.

He had a good relationship in the locker room, and there was no language division and opposition, so he often played the role of a peacemaker.

However, this conflict was a bit too big and the impact was not good.

Both of them cursed at each other and almost fought.

And the war was imminent, how could this impact be good?

Lukaku thought with a headache: "Tomorrow's game will be difficult!"

Unlike the impetuous atmosphere within the national team, the whole of Belgium is still very restless.

Belgium, as the European Red Devils, has missed five consecutive World Cups. Now, with the emergence of the golden generation of Hazard, Lukaku, Vertonghen, De Bruyne, Fellaini, Dembele, etc., they have seen the hope of entering the World Cup again.

Even based on the strength of individual players, they also think that Belgium as a whole is strong.

Even if the opponent is Croatia, which is now in the limelight, they still believe that there is hope of defeating Croatia at home.

Therefore, the whole of Belgium pays positive attention to and reports on this game.

They all look forward to the team defeating Croatia at home and letting the European Red Devils appear on the World Cup stage again.

And unlike before, they also expect this Belgian national team to perform better, break the best record in history, and create a new era.

In this atmosphere, the Croatian national team arrived in Brussels, the capital of Belgium.

They are about to face the golden generation of Belgium at the ‘King Baudouin Stadium’!