After six years in charge of Croatia, Slaven Bilic would like nothing better than to lift the Euro 2012 trophy before he moves into club management with Russian side Lokomotiv Moscow.
And it's not just a pipe dream: the Croats -- a surprise third in the 1998 World Cup in France -- made it to the quarter-finals of Euro 2008 but crashed out after opponents Turkey equalised in the final minute and then went on to win on penalties.
Croatia may have exacted revenge by beating the Turks in a play-off to reach the finals this time round but the pain of that defeat still lingers, as they prepare to meet Italy, European and world champions Spain and Ireland next month.
"(The quarter-final against Turkey) will haunt us for the rest of our lives," Bilic said at the time.
Even though Croatia have a point to prove after failing to qualify for the last World Cup, Bilic will still need all his motivational skills to convince his players that they can get make the knock-out stages and go on to victory in Kiev on July 1.
"I'm certainly a better coach then in 2008 but the goal is the same -- to win Euro 2012," he said.
But he admitted that the challenge at the Euros is a far tougher one than at a World Cup.
"I think that the Euros is the cruellest tournament in sport," he told goal.com. "I'm not saying it's more difficult to win than the World Cup but at least in the World Cup you can have a mixed standard of group.
"It's really hard this time around because apart from the hosts Poland and Ukraine, the other teams really are the best sides in the FIFA rankings (in Europe). You can't get an easy group."
As for his opponents, Bilic is undaunted. Spain are a team to be respected but are not an unbeatable force, he said, and could be undone by Croatia's attacking style of play.
"I am quite optimistic," the former Hajduk Spilt, Everton and West Ham United defender told Goal.com.
"People talk about Spain but if you look at it, in Euro 2008 they only beat Italy in the quarters on penalties and in the World Cup (in 2010), they lost to Switzerland in the group, and struggled against Chile and Paraguay.
"If they play 20 per cent below their level, you have a chance even if they will still create chances. But the bottom line for me is that they're the best, the very best."
Should Croatia qualify from their group there is a chance they will meet France in the last eight, which would see him take on Laurent Blanc and reignite the debate about the latter's sending off in the 1998 World Cup semi-final.
While many still blame Bilic for play-acting by clutching his face when he tumbled to the ground, costing Blanc his place in the World Cup final, the Croat remains unrepentant.
"As on all corners, I was marking Laurent Blanc. Nothing had happened between us during the whole game. Then, out of nowhere, he hit me. It wasn't like Mike Tyson but I was struck.
"I panicked and collapsed. I'm sorry that Laurent missed the final, genuinely, but the one to blame is him."
Bilic is one of football's larger-than-life characters: a qualified lawyer who is fluent in English, Italian and German, he is also a highly-regarded rhythm guitarist who once had a number one in Croatia.
"I cannot do my job without music. I need to relax," Bilic says of his hobby.
Source: AFP
