Croatia coach Zlatko Dalic's analysis of the World Cup game against Argentina required a double take.

He said on Wednesday that Argentina would be the "easiest game" for the Croatians in the group stage.

Say what?

Dalic clarified: "I didn't say that Argentina was the easiest opponent. I said that this was the easiest game for us. We have nothing to lose. We are playing against one of the best."

Dalic argued that no one expects Croatia to beat Lionel Messi and Argentina in Nizhny Novgorod on Thursday and so the pressure's off.

"We have three points in the bag," Dalic said.

Croatia impressed to beat Nigeria 2-0 to open their World Cup. Argentina are at the other end of the pressure spectrum. A surprising 1-1 draw with Iceland -- which included a missed Messi penalty -- means the South Americans desperately need to win to put their World Cup back on track.

It's true that Croatia are the underdog in the Group D meeting, but Dalic was being modest about his team.

Croatia went on to shock the football world on Thursday by convincingly beating Argentina 3 - 0 to lead in group D.


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