Borna Barisic admits he was fearing more shootout misery as Croatia stepped up to the plate for penalties with Japan in Qatar.
The Rangers defender was part of the side that shot down Japan to reach the World Cup quarter-finals as he made his first appearance of the tournament. Keeper Dominik Livakovic was the hero on the day as he stopped three dreadful Japanese penalties to tee up a last eight showdown with Brazil.
Ibrox man Barisic wasn't among the takers but he admits he couldn't quite get the Europa League final out of his mind, having suffered last-gasp heartbreak in Seville as Rangers fell to Eintracht Frankfurt in the last hurdle back in May. But he was relieved to watch his team succeed this time - even if there was no special practice for shootouts.
He told the Daily Mail : "I really didn't want that to happen again. We managed to win on penalties and now I feel very happy and proud.
"There was no special preparation for penalties. Our coach just chose who should take them. That was it.
"Our goalkeeper was amazing. Dominik is very good with penalties and he showed that."
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