Herdman talks

DAY

You couldn't attend a pregame press conference without John Herdman being told about his controversial statement after Wednesday's game.

After , the 1-0 loss to the Belgians, Herdman said his team would “pulverize” (Editor's note: he used the word “ fuck “) Croatia.

Obviously, the Croatian journalists jumped on the thing like misery on the poor world and the Canadian coach was rather clever in deflecting the subject even if the damage was already done.

“We are in a media black-out since November 14, few things reach us”, he first launched.

This n is just window dressing. Players are very present on social networks.

Well deflected

The representative of the Croatian tabloid 24 SATA nevertheless tried to pull the worms out of him. It was this newspaper that featured a front-page photo of Herdman's head on a naked body with maple leaves on his mouth and crotch with text that reads “You have a tongue. , but do you have any balls?».

Our man did try to find out what Herdman had thought of it, but his success rate approached 0%.

“My wife wants to know who this guy is,” Herdman joked. I have a little more belly than that. 

Was that a way to motivate his men he then asked him.

“We've waited 36 years to be here, this team doesn't need any extra motivation. We have former players, pioneers, who talk to our players and it will continue, that is our motivation. ”

And the big Croatian guy tried to have his picture taken with Herdman after the press conference. Guess how it ended for him.

Dealing with the Pressure

Awkward though it was, Herdman's statement hit the mark . The Englishman leaves nothing to chance and this exit, hot, was undoubtedly calculated.

It was a way to put all the pressure on his shoulders to prevent it from falling on his men after a defeat. We will know today in the attitude of the Croats towards the Canadians if the maneuver worked.

But midfielder Stephen Eustaquio, who was to the left of his coach on the stand, praised his audacity.

“John handles the pressure very well, it allows us to focus on the tactical aspect. The media side is not going to make their players better. They are at the World Cup and they are who they are.

“His attention to detail is truly amazing. If we have reached another level, it is entirely thanks to him,” he added.

A little respect

A few minutes later, it was the turn of the Croatian coach, Zlatko Dalic, to be on the podium, and we quickly understood that he had not appreciated the words of his Canadian counterpart.

Dalic recalled his team's past accomplishments and appealed for respect.

“The Croatian team deserves respect and dignity. We have shown by our play and our conduct that we deserve this respect.

“His way of speaking was not respectful, we are the vice-champions and we must respect each other. each other. I will not spend time commenting on the statements of others. ”

Favorites?

After dominating the second country in the world, the Belgium, Canada must now come up against the nation which occupies the 12th rank in the FIFA rankings.

And let's remember in passing that Luka Modric and his teammates reached the final of the World Cup in 2018, in Russia.

Not an easier task awaits the Canadians. A Croatian journalist therefore asked Stephen Eustaquio who should be the favorite in this meeting.

The Canadian midfielder didn't really answer, but made a very strong statement.

“Before the tournament, we were the favorites not to do well in this group and we showed that we could dominate Belgium.