Croatia are determined to beat England in their final Euro 2008 qualifier this week to show their quality, midfielder Niko Kranjcar said yesterday.

The Group E leaders have already reached the finals in Austria and Switzerland while England need a draw at Wembley on Wednesday to guarantee joining them at next year's tournament.

"The atmosphere at Wembley will be very special and it is our duty to play our best football, to demonstrate our quality and stamp our authority," the Portsmouth player said after Croatia's 2-0 defeat in Macedonia.

Despite losing, Croatia still reached the finals after Russia were stunned 2-1 in Israel, also opening the door for England to qualify.

Croatia have 26 points with England on 23 while third-placed Russia are on 21 and can still qualify if they win their final match in Andorra and Croatia beat England.

"We're obliged to put in a fully committed performance if for no other reason than because Israel showed what a proud and honest nation they are and we have to do exactly the same," Kranjcar said.

Sign up to our free newsletters

Get the best updates straight to your inbox:
Please select at least one mailing list.

You can unsubscribe at any time by clicking the link in the footer of our emails. We use Mailchimp as our marketing platform. By subscribing, you acknowledge that your information will be transferred to Mailchimp for processing.