Croatia coach Slaven Bilic on Tuesday said he was to blame for his side's failure to obtain direct qualification for the Euro 2012 finals as they finished second in group F behind Greece.
"I'm the only one responsible for results in qualifying," he told Croatian television. "Our goal was to finish first in the group, so this must go down as a failure."
Bilic was speaking immediately after his side defeated Latvia 2-0 in Rijeka in their final qualifier, but he admitted the damage had been done in Friday's defeat in Greece.
"We are a very good, dangerous team when we all play well, but last Friday against Greece in Athens we were neither smart nor brave," he added.
Croatia lost 2-0 to the 2004 European champions and lost top spot in group F in the process, with Greece clinching automatic qualification thanks to their 2-1 win in Georgia.
However, Bilic said he was confident that Croatia could beat whoever they are drawn against in next month's playoffs, even in the midst of uncertainty surrounding his own future.
There had been speculation in local media that the Croatian Federation were considering Bilic's position in the wake of the Greece loss, with a meeting scheduled at the end of this week.
"I don't run from responsibility," Bilic said.
"The team also believes in me and they showed that. I don't know what will happen next. I will talk to the federation officials."
The 43-year-old former international defender took over as national coach in 2006.
Source: AFP
