Croatia’s Nations League match against England in Rijeka is officially being played behind closed doors, but the ground will be far from empty. The closed-doors status is a UEFA punishment imposed on Croatia after crowd trouble involving their supporters during a Nations League quarter-final against France.
UEFA’s disciplinary rules include an exception to that punishment, allowing children up to the age of 14 from schools and football academies in the local Rijeka area to attend. They have been invited to the match free of charge.
UEFA had initially anticipated that around 3,000 children plus their guardians would take up the invitation. The Croatian federation now expects between 5,500 and 6,000 instead. In an 8,200-seat stadium, that puts the attendance at somewhere around 70% of capacity.
Add in the 100 England fans who have been permitted entry and there should be considerably more atmosphere than the official designation suggests, even if the noise will be higher-pitched than a normal international crowd.
The same round of Nations League fixtures produced a notable night for Northern Irish football, with Ukraine 0-3 Northern Ireland among the headline results. Elsewhere, Kevin De Bruyne’s 127th cap for Belgium went very well indeed, Zinedine Zidane was left frustrated in his first home game as France boss, Robert Lewandowski scored a hat-trick, and a Liverpool full-back claimed a winner.