Two hearts seem to beat in the chest of Croatian international Andrej Kramaric when it comes to the 2022 FIFA World Cup in Qatar.
“As a fan, I would like Argentina and Messi to win as I am a big fan of Messi. But in fact I think Brazil is going to do it,” the 31-year-old told Xinhua.
“Brazil has played on a very high level over the past month,” the Hoffenheim striker added.
But to beat European teams won’t be a piece of cake, as “you have amazing quality teams in Europe such as France, Germany, Portugal, Spain, England and Croatia,” the striker added.
In Kramaric’s eyes, Croatia also has what it takes to make splash in in Qatar.
“We made it to the final four of the Nations League. If we can take this performance level to Qatar, we can reach nice things as we did in 2018.”
While making the 2018 FIFA World Cup final stills feel unreal, it is a motivation booster for his country’s team.
“We would feel happy to repeat the determination and family-like atmosphere around the team. We don’t feel any pressure, that might be an advantage,” Kramaric stated.
The Croatian team’s determination is triggered by the spirit of Real Madrid midfielder Luka Modric “who has won all club trophies you can. But even at 37, he keeps on wanting more.”
To stage a World Cup in the middle of a regular season might be a much smaller problem than expected, the attacker said.
“It’s the first time in history and it is a challenge for everyone. But maybe it is an advantage not to play a major after a long energy-taking season in summer, as players are not tired at this point of the year,” Kramaric commented.
