With the World Cup craze about to reach its peak, a classic David vs Goliath moment has emerged. While many are familiar with France, Croatia is more of an enigma, especially in Singaporean eyes.

Thus, when Mothership was given the opportunity to interview a group of Croatian nationals in Singapore, we quickly jumped at the opportunity to learn more about Croatia and also their views on the World Cup.

Thoughts on Semi-final game vs England

When asked how he felt about the Semi-final game against England, Mato Njavro, a Singapore Management University (SMU) lecturer, said he was never worried at all during the game.

"When Croatia conceded the first goal, I was very comfortable. Because if there is anything that this team has shown, it is that it has resilience."

He cited examples of Croatia's games against Russia and Denmark, where they were always down in the beginning, but always managed to sneak out a win.

This view was echoed by the rest, stating that the Croatian national squad is best when they have nothing to lose.

Croatia's sweet revenge

Naturally, the group was hyped about Croatia's chances in the upcoming finals.

When asked about their views on whether Croatia will win the World Cup, their previous bout against France was quickly mentioned.

In 1998, Croatia made it to the semi-finals in their debut World Cup, but met an obstacle.

"Twenty years ago, when Croatia participated at the first World Cup in France, we reached the semi-finals. In the semi-finals, we played against France and we lost 2-1. They say revenge is a dish best served cold. I think twenty years is enough time...it is pretty cold, and this World Cup is Croatia's World Cup," Njavro said.

Despite acknowledging that France has an amazing team, they believe that Croatia will prevail this time.

Where to watch the game?

The group watched the semi-finals in CHIJMES, but they might also watch the games in the Sahara Bar and Restaurant in Boat Quay that we were at.

It is a popular hangout for many Croatians, and also many others from the Balkan region, in Singapore, and definitely a place to look out for during the finals.

However, despite being unsure of exactly where they would watch the games, they stated that this is likely where they would celebrate Croatia's victory, since they also celebrated their victory over England there.

Where is the best place to grab Croatian food?

Ivan Livic gave tips on the best places to get Croatian food in Singapore: The Sahara Bar and Restaurant, the Next Door Cafe, and the Adriatic Pantry, where one can also find cheese and truffles from Croatia.

Most of these places not only serve Croatian food, but food from other countries in the Balkan region as well.

Of course, their best recommendation is to simply go to Croatia itself, which is "only a 15-hour flight". While there are many one-stop options to Croatia right now, they jokingly appealed to the Singapore Airlines to start a non-stop flight to Croatia in the near future.

With the increasing popularity of Croatia, especially after this current World Cup, perhaps it is a good idea after all.

Facts about Croatia, from Croatians

Croatia's natural beauty was a main source of pride for the Croatian group. With much of the country covered by forests, the country is blessed with natural scenery. It is therefore no surprise that the country hosts the filming locations of famous movies and TV series such as Star Wars and Game of Thrones.

The group also emphasised that Croatia is a sporting powerhouse that punches above its weight.

With a total of 44 Olympic medals since 1991, 15 of which are gold, it is hard to argue with this statement. In fact, in the last Olympic games, Croatia won 11 medals, which was seen par for the course.

In fact, as Livic jokingly puts it,

"If they come back with less, we don't allow them to come back into the country."

Apart from sports, Nikola Tesla, best known as the inventor of alternating current (AC) electricity supply system, was also raised as a badge of Croatian pride.

Despite being more popularly known as a Serbian scientist, Tesla was in fact born in Smiljan, a small town in modern day Croatia.

Full of surprises

The Croatians are a talented bunch.

In fact, one of the Croatians living in Singapore has translated Lee Kuan Yew's book One Man's View of the World to Croatian. The book is published in Croatia, and many Croatians have already begun learning more about Singapore via the book.

In fact, the author of the translated book was Njavro. Talk about Singaporean culture going places.

New home for football?

The group expects more than 100,000 people to be waiting for the Croatian team's arrival from Russia on Monday.

With football the most popular sport in Croatia, the jubilant mood during the interview is apparent.

As Njavro cheekily puts it,

Football is going home, except it has a new home.

The group broke into song after this bold statement, with a passion only a team on the verge of a championship can convey.

No matter what the results are, Croatia as an underdog team has already proven that they are champions in their own way.

Given the amazing Croatian performance thus far, it is hard to argue with that.

Top image by Darryl Laiu