Croatia and AC Milan forward Ante Rebic admits he was ‘SURPRISED’ Gareth Southgate left Fikayo Tomori out of his England squad for Euro 2020 after his impressive spell on loan in Italy
Croatia winger Ante Rebic has expressed surprise at Gareth Southgate‘s failure to call on Fikayo Tomori for the European Championship.
Rebic’s side lie in wait for England at Wembley on Sunday and are expected to represent their sternest test in Group D.
The forward believes his AC Milan team-mate Tomori, who was at the San Siro on loan from Chelsea, would have offered England a more athletic option at the back.
Croatia’s Ante Rebic was surprised Fikayo Tomori was not in the England squad for Euro 2020
Rebic believes his AC Milan team-mate would have offered England a more athletic option
‘Honestly, I am a bit surprised because from their choice of centre halves, they all seem to have the same characteristics,’ Rebic said.
‘Fik is aggressive and fast. We talked and he said that he didn’t believe he was going to be called up. So I’m a bit surprised.’
Croatia arrive at Euro 2020 with lower expectations than three years ago, when Zlatko Dalic guided them to a World Cup final at England’s expense.
Key stars, including Mario Mandzukic and Ivan Rakitic, have retired from national duty, while there is concern over a lack of goalscoring threat.
Croatia arrive at Euro 2020 with lower expectations than the World Cup three years ago
Rebic maintained that Croatia’s target is simply progressing from the group and Sunday would set the tone.
‘England are definitely a quality team and one of the favourites to win this tournament,’ he added. ‘I don’t think they have any weak points in particular.
‘Wembley might be a bit of an advantage for them but ultimately it is not going to have a big impact on the result because the stadium won’t be full.
‘We’ve got used to playing in front of empty stands.’
