Serbian, Bosnian media critical of Croatia's World Cup prep loss to Belgium
Translated from Croatian, summarized and contextualized by DistantNews.
At a glance
News
Sources not specified
Context piece
- Croatian media reacted negatively to the national football team's 2-0 friendly loss against Belgium.
- Serbian outlets described the performance as a "cold shower" and "nothing promising" ahead of the World Cup.
- Bosnian media highlighted Croatia's struggles, with Klix calling it a "failure" and SportSport noting "problems were laid bare."
Regional media outlets in Serbia and Bosnia and Herzegovina offered critical assessments of Croatia's 2-0 friendly defeat to Belgium, viewing it as an unfavorable omen ahead of the World Cup.
Cold shower for the Vatreni at Rujevica: Belgium downed Croatia in Rijeka.
Serbian news portal Kurir headlined the match as a "cold shower for the Vatreni (the Fiery Ones) at Rujevica: Belgium downed Croatia in Rijeka." Blic echoed this sentiment, stating, "Belgium warned the Croats before the World Cup: The performance of the checkered ones in Rijeka is nothing promising."
Belgium warned the Croats before the World Cup: The performance of the checkered ones in Rijeka is nothing promising.
The match, played in Rijeka as part of World Cup preparations, saw Belgium secure victory with goals from Youri Tielemans in the 38th minute and Romelu Lukaku in the 96th minute. Media outlets noted that while both teams had opportunities, Belgian goalkeeper Thibaut Courtois remained unbeaten.
Croatia underperformed in front of their fans, losing to Belgium in the first test for the World Cup.
Bosnian media also focused on Croatia's shortcomings. Sarajevo-based portal Klix reported, "Croatia underperformed in front of their fans, losing to Belgium in the first test for the World Cup." SportSport.ba's headline, "Rujevica exposed Croatia's problems: Experiment ended in failure," further emphasized the team's perceived issues.
Rujevica exposed Croatia's problems: Experiment ended in failure.
DistantNews Editorial
Originally published by Veฤernji List in Croatian. Translated, summarized, and contextualized by our editorial team with added local perspective. Read our editorial standards.
More Stories
From Our Blog
What Gets Lost (and Found) When News Is Translated
The Critical Role of Diaspora Media in Global News
What Travellers Should Know About Countries with Restricted Press
A Digital Nomad's Guide to Following Local News
How the Same Story Looks Different in Different Countries
