Preview: Must-win qualifier puts Croatians under pressure

Croatia will host Bulgaria behind the closed doors of Maksimir Stadium in Zagreb in EURO 2016 qualifying match on Saturday night.

New coach Ante Cacic will lead the Croatian team for the first time and there is no doubt that this will be the most important test of his career.

Since he took over this position from Niko Kovac, his approach towards Croatian star players like Luka Modric, Ivan Rakitic, Mario Mandzukic, Mateo Kovacic, Vedran Corluka and others was a little less strict than the one his predecessor had.

During the past week under Cacic, the Croatian team had one practice session a day, players had a chance to meet family members and friends and they didn't have an obligation to wake up at certain time and come as a group for a breakfast.

But, when the time will come for his players to show their skills, on Saturday night, Cacic will be more demanding and he is convinced that the players will make him and the whole nation proud once again.

The atmosphere around the team is not perfect and the players know that they will have to show more than they did in a 2-0 loss at Oslo against Norway and at Baku in a 0-0 draw versus Azerbaijan.

"I know that I have to play much better than I did. I plan to repay my debt on Saturday and I know that my teammates will do the same," Barcelona midfielder Ivan Rakitic said.

It is a must win game for Croatia because the team that was a leader of the group up until the last two qualifying matches now lies in the third position with 14 points, two behind second placed Norway and four behind Italy that tops the standings in Group H of EURO 2016 qualifiers.

"I can't remember when it was the last time that we had three bad games in a row. I expect us to win all six points and to qualify, if not in October than in November. It would be a shame for us players not to do that and we would have to think about leaving this job if we don't do it," the 30-year-old defender Vedran Corluka said.

Croatia is not guaranteed to gain direct qualification for EURO 2016 even if they win in both of the last two group matches.

If Norway win six points and Italy take three from the last two rounds, Croatia would stay third and would be pushed to playoffs for remaining four places.

There are a few diversities for Croatian team to overcome on Saturday.

They will be playing for the second time in a row a home match behind the closed doors because of UEFA disciplinary measures against Croatian Football Federation. The team will have a debutant at the bench and Ante Cacic will have to go to the battle without injured Juventus striker Mario Mandzukic and suspended veteran Ivica Olic.

Cacic will put the faith of the team and his own as national coach at hands of Luka Modric and Ivan Rakitic, two players that are on the provisional Golden Ball list.

"There wasn't a lot of time for the new head coach to implement some new strategy. We have to follow his ideas and believe in our strength. It's up to us players to show up and be at our best," Rakitic said.

He will have a task to provide chances for Croatian attack that will be most probably led by Fiorentina striker Nikola Kalinic who scored 8 goals in 12 appearances this season for the Italian Serie A leader.

"I know I am ready. I am in a good form and I want to help the team get this important win," Kalinic said about his possible role as a leading Croatian forward.

Bulgaria has a dangerous position of the team that has nothing to lose or gain because they don't have any chance to qualify. The whole pressure will be on Croatian players.

"It's a situtaion that we are very familiar with. It's nothing new for us and we always reacted well with our backs against the wall. We just have to do it one more time," Vedran Corluka said. Endi