Croatia looks to make its mark at World Cup

Croatia looks to make its mark at World Cup

Absent from the World Cup four years ago, Croatia returns and will play in the tournament's first match against powerhouse Brazil.

After a month of preparation in the fresh alpine air in Austria, the Croatian national football team is spending several days at the Brazilian resort of Praia do Forte, adapting to the warm, humid climate and preparing to play in the opening match of the World Cup on Thursday (June 12th) against host nation Brazil.

Croatia enters the World Cup led by a manager who, as recently as last autumn, was not in line to be guiding the squad.

Niko Kovac was named to coach the country's under-21 squad in January 2013. But in October the Croatian Football Federation -- displeased with the performance of the senior national team under manager Igor Stimac -- made a change, sacking Stimac and tapping Kovac to replace him.

The 42-year-old Kovac was born in Berlin and spent nearly 20 years playing for clubs in Germany and Austria. He made 83 appearances and scored 14 goals for Croatia's national team from 1996 to 2008. His debut as the national team's manager came November 15th in Reykjavik as Croatia and Iceland played to a scoreless draw in the first leg of a two-game World Cup playoff qualifier.

Four days later in Zagreb, Croatia clinched a berth in the World Cup by beating Iceland 2-0 in the second leg.

Seven months later, Kovac is optimistic heading into the match with Brazil -- a team widely regarded as a favourite to win the tournament.

"For us it is an honour to open the World Cup against Brazil and, if we play with them, it is better to play first than the second or third game," Kovac told reporters last week. "Pressure on Brazil...