Before the match against Japan (29:29), it was announced that Cindric could miss the match due to a minor injury he suffered playing with Barcelona, but ultimately played.
Cindric played 42 minutes against Japan
Recall, Cindric spent 42 minutes on the court and scored four goals from 10 attempts against Japan. In addition, he had four assists and lost two balls.
“Cindric felt less pain and is suffering from an old injury. We will see how he feels, maybe everything will be fine, and he will play today. We will not take risks if it is not necessary,” said assistant coach Hrvoje Horvat ahead of the game.
RTL commentators Goran Sprem and Petar Metlicic agreed with him, but Cindric obviously felt good enough to play.
Cindric also had injuries in the last two national team competitions
For coach Lino Cervar, there is now no other alternative in the center back position except Janko Kević from Nexe. Igor Karačić is also in Egypt, but he is recovering from inflammation of the pubis symphysis (groin area) and should be ready for the second round of the competition.
In the last two competitions, the 2020 European Championship and the 2019 World Championship, Cindric had major problems with injuries and could not adequately help the national team. Maybe that’s why he had a great desire to play against Japan.
In the second match of Group C, Croatia will play against Angola on Sunday at 6 pm, and on January 19 against Qatar in the last match of the group stage.
Source: Index.hr
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