Advertisement

World Cup coach brutally mocked after X-rated message backfires

Riley Morgan
·Sports Reporter
·4-min read
Forward Andrej Kramaric (pictured left) in a press conference and (pictured right) Croatian tabloid front page.
Forward Andrej Kramaric (pictured left) trolled the Canadian coach after his X-rated team talk backfired, which garnered attention from a Croatian tabloid (pictured right) before the World Cup game. (Images: Getty Images/Twitter)

Forward Andrej Kramaric has trolled the Canadian coach after his X-rated team talk backfired as Croatia sent their rival packing at the FIFA World Cup. Croatia overturned their lacklustre draw against Morocco in the opening group stage game to bounce back and hammer Canada 4-1 to take the lead in Group E after a match littered with tension.

'WOEFUL': World Cup carnage leaves football fans in disbelief

'TAKE A BOW': Fans erupt over Graham Arnold act at World Cup

'THIS IS AWFUL': Socceroos shredded over 'horrible' look at World Cup

Canada outplayed Belgium in their first match, but ultimately lost 1-0 after succumbing to the European team's experience. And coach John Herdman had some strong words for his team ahead of Canada's clash against Croatia.

"I told my players they belong here and we are going to go f' Croatia," Herdman said in an interview team after the opening match. However, the words backfired after Croatia showed why they could once again go deep into the tournament as they hammered Canada 4-1 and eliminated them from the tournament.

With Herdman's words reaching Croatia before the game, man-of-the-match Kramaric took the opportunity to take an X-rated dig back at the manager.

"I want to thank Canada's coach for the motivation," Kramaric said. "Croatia demonstrated who f***ed whom."

Former American footballer Herculez Gomez also hinted that Canada had upset the Croatian team.

"If you're Canada...what you least want to do is upset a team that individually and collectively has done more than your federation in its history," Gomez said.

In the build-up to the game, Croatian tabloid 24 Sata had singled out Herdman for his comments about his prediction. The headline read: "You have the mouth, but do you have the balls as well?"

It's fair to say the manager's words well and truly backfired with Canada now unable to qualify after two games.

Handshake controversy between Croatia and Canada

Following the match, there appeared to be unresolved tension between the two coaches as Croatian manager Zlatko Dalic and Herdman didn't shake hands. Croatian coach Dalic hit out after what he claimed was a 'snub'.

“I did not see the other head coach after the match. Whether I lose or win, I always congratulate the other head coach," Dalic said,

“He wasn’t there and that’s his way of doing things. He’s obviously mad. He is a good coach, he is a high-quality professional, but it will take some time for him to learn some things.”

Canada initially shocked Croatia with Bayern Munich left back Alphonso Davies scoring the opening goal after just two minutes.

However, Croatia slowly clicked into gear as Mateo Kovacic and Luka Modric piled on the pressure in midfield.

Kramaric scored either side of half time, which was accompanied by a Marko Livaja goal.

Croatia then ran away with the game as Lovro Majer was provided an easy tap-in to secure the three points.

Belgium will now face Croatia - who lead the group on four points - in the final group game, which could see either team eliminated.

Morocco will take on Canada with Group F qualification in the balance for all teams except Canada.

with AAP

Click here to sign up to our newsletter for all the latest and breaking stories from Australia and around the world.