Niko Kovac has been appointed as caretaker manager of the Croatia national team after the Croatian Football Federation accepted the resignation offer from coach Igor Stimac, according to 24 Sata.
Stimac offered his resignation after Croatia lost 2-0 to Scotland last night. In his post-match interview, he said that he didn’t think Croatia would qualify for the World Cup via the playoffs and that he thought his position as coach was being questioned by those in Croatia.
Croatia Football Federation President Davor Suker announced this morning that Kovac will be taking over the job with immediate effect. Kovac previously earned 83 caps with the national team. Whether or not Kovac will get the permanent job as Croatia coach depends on if the team qualifies for Brazil, said Suker.
Helping Kovac will be his brother Robert Kovac, who also coaches Croatia’s u-21 side.
Here’s the final interview with Igor Stimac as Croatia national team manager where he explains why he offered his resignation:
Croatia will learn who their opponent will be in the World Cup playoffs on Monday.
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