Darijo Srna opens up on Euro 2008 England win and John Terry attempt

Former Shakhtar Donetsk right-back Darijo Srna has revealed John Terry is still not over England’s failure to qualify for Euro 2008.

The Three Lions shockingly missed out on a place at the tournament that was jointly hosted by Austria and Switzerland after finishing third in Group E, behind Russia and Croatia. This qualifying campaign, which featured three defeats, led to Steve McLaren losing his job as manager.

It all came down to England’s final group game at Wembley against Croatia, which they only need one point from to book their place at the Euros, though Slaven Bilic’s side inflicted a surprise 3-2 defeat to ensure Russia would take second spot.

One player who missed out on this crucial qualifying fixture was former Chelsea captain John Terry, who was ruled out through injury and could only watch on instead of skippering the side as usual.

Croatia had already made it to the knockout phase of Euro 2008 heading into this match, ensuring the pressure was off, and their players had been celebrating in the days leading up to this fixture.

One of those representing Croatia at Wembley was long-serving defender, Srna, who has admitted he recently tried to discuss the game with Terry but had little joy.

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“It was an amazing game for us. England have always had a fantastic team and great players, and the Premier League is the strongest league in the world,” the 42-year-old told FourFourTwo. “But there was a lot of pressure on England that night – huge. We could see it building in the media. It was very different for us; we had qualified for the Euros four days earlier, after Israel beat Russia, so we’d been spending the time celebrating.

“On the day of the game, our coach, Slaven Bilic, allowed us to relax with a shopping trip in London. Because we were so relaxed, I believe it made us a very difficult opponent for England, who need the win so much. I met John Terry at Stamford Bridge recently for an FA Cup match and we talked, but he joked that he didn’t want to speak to me because of that England-Croatia game.”

It is understandable Terry did not wish to discuss this dark moment in England’s history, having suffered severe backlash over England’s inability to finish in the top two of Group E. Discussing the group stage exit at the time it occured, the Chelsea legend said: “I would always play if I am asked but you have to think of the bigger picture and if I had to come off after 50 or 60 minutes because of the injury then I would have been no good to anybody.

“It is different if you are an attacking player. Maybe the boss would have stuck me on the bench if it was Wayne Rooney but there was not much I could have brought to the game late on. I had long conversations with Steve McClaren and wanted to be part of it. I was very close.

“It’s going to take a very long time for the public to get over it. For us as well, you don’t want to come out of your house or people to see you. As time goes on things heal and it gets easier but at the same time when you walk down the street or are out you wonder whether people are looking at you but life goes on.”

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