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Croatia coach Slaven Bilic has played down remarks he made last week about the England side lacking "Englishness" and "aggression".
Bilic, preparing for Wednesday night's crucial World Cup qualifier against Fabio Capello's side at Wembley Stadium, claims that he was misunderstood.
"I praised Fabio Capello and I praised the England team," he said after his side trained on the famous turf on Tuesday night. "Of course they have not lost their Englishness.
"What I said was that they are more organised, more solid, they can control the game almost completely now and are playing a different game. They have won their first seven qualifiers - that is like having three match points in tennis. There are still six months to go before the World Cup and I think they will get better and better."
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Capello had earlier spoken with delight about Bilic's comments, claiming that his opposite number had made his team talk for him. He will simply remind the squad of Bilic's quip.
"Thank you Mr Bilic,'' Capello said, knowing victory will secure qualification. "It is the best. I have no need to motivate my players after this. It's fantastic assistance.''
Bilic also rejected claims that Croatia would attempt to wind Wayne Rooney up and get him sent off. "We are not a dirty team," he replied witheringly. "If you have been watching us for the last 20 years you will know that."
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