Croatia v Bulgaria background
Thursday, September 10, 2015
Article summary
In their first game under new coach Ante Čačić, Croatia will look to maintain the pressure on the top two in Group H – and end Bulgaria's slender hopes of a play-off place.
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Croatia will look to stay in the hunt for qualification from Group H – and end Bulgaria's slender hopes of a play-off place – in their first game under new coach Ante Čačić.
• Croatia trail Norway (by two points) and Italy (by four), but a win against Bulgaria could ramp up the pressure on the top two, who meet in their final qualifier.
• Bulgaria can only finish third if they win their final two games and Croatia lose theirs. In the event that the sides finish level on points, head-to-head record and then goal difference would separate them.
Previous meetings
• Nikolay Bodurov's own goal in Sofia earned Croatia a 1-0 win in the sides' first Group H meeting.
• Croatia's record in seven encounters with Bulgaria is decent: W4 D2 L1 (W1 D2 L0 in Croatia).
Form guide
• Croatia are without a win in three competitive games (D2 L1) – a run which meant they dropped out of the top two in Group H, with coach Niko Kovač being replaced by Ante Čačić in September.
• Bulgaria have won only one of their last seven qualifiers (W1 D2 L4, with that lone win a 1-0 in Malta). They failed to score in their two September qualifiers, losing 1-0 to Norway and Italy.
Disciplinary
• Ivica Olić serves a one-match ban against Bulgaria; Domagoj Vida, Marcelo Brozović and Mario Mandžukić are all within a booking of a suspension. Mateo Kovačić is available again after his one-game ban.
• Svetoslav Dyakov, Yordan Minev and Ilian Mitsanski are suspended against Croatia; Yordan Minev and Ivelin Popov are a booking away from a ban.
Trivia and links
• Croatia have only once failed to reach the UEFA European Championship finals since independence, missing the cut for UEFA EURO 2000. Bulgaria have not reached a final tournament since UEFA EURO 2004.
• In 14 matches between clubs from these nations in UEFA competition, the Bulgarian sides' record is W4 D3 L7 (W3 D3 L2 at home, W1 D0 L5 in Croatia).
• Bulgarian and Croatian sides have met in ten UEFA youth and age-limit matches, for which Croatia's record is W6 D1 L3.
