Juranovic: We want to be remembered like Croatia's '98 heroes

Josip Juranovic speaks to FIFA ahead of Croatia's semi-final showdown with Argentina.

Josip, another historical chapter in Croatian football has been written here in Qatar. Do you realise what you have accomplished?
I can only speak for myself, but it still hasn't fully sunk in. When my parents send me videos from mine and Bruno (Petkovic)'s home town , Dubrava, it immediately warms my heart. But I think we'll only understand what we have done for our country and people once we arrive back in Croatia.

Your team showed a lot of character again in the match against Brazil. What exactly is it that makes the team be able to come back, turn around and win against the biggest opponents?
I don't know but I am motivated by the fact that, despite being a small country, we have a lot of heart. We will give every ounce of strength we have from the first minute to the last. There is simply no giving up for us. We play for one another. We showed that during our match against Brazil. We simply did everything within our power to win and we earned that.

You played the match of your life against the Brazilians. The entire world is now talking about you.
Thank you for that. Again, I wouldn't put only myself in the spotlight. I can also thank [Mario] Pasalic and Bruno Petkovic for scoring that goal, and guys like [Marcelo] Brozovic and [Luka] Modric. I can sum up the entire team that way. We simply played very well as a team. We defended very well when they had the ball and we played the way we know how to. That is why the entire team deserve this.

An unbelievably tough match now awaits you.
Well, this is the World Cup. All the matches are tough. We can see that Morocco, another team from our pool, also deserved to reach the semi-finals. That’s why every match we get is another new competition. We want to give everything we have again and make our people happy again.

One more question, regarding the FIFA+ documentary 'Defining a Nation'. It follows the generation of players that emerged from that tough, wartime period. Does that maybe serve as additional motivation for you to go until the end here?
Well, those players are the ones who have shown us what it means to fight for our Croatia. We simply represent them here. I think that we also want to achieve something that will make us be remembered like they are. That is why we simply can't wait for that match against Argentina.