There was much merriment in Zagreb yesterday evening, when Croatia trounced Ireland in the European soccer tournament staged in Poland and Ukraine. Dressed in red and white checkerboard T-shirts after the country’s coat of arms, everyone was ecstatic. Nay, delirious. The mood is a bit different this morning, though. Quiet happiness has set in, but anyone interested in soccer cannot but contemplate the next two games on Croatia’s path. The first is with Italy and the second with Spain. Ouch. Yesterday’s game between the two giants ended up undecided, but neither is a slouch. Far from it. The Croatian team is likely to put up a good fight against both, but the future does not look all that bright. It may well get trounced in turn. Be that as it may, the quiet happiness is a joy to witness at this precious point. Fickle as it is bound to be, it is still a welcome gift from on high.

Addendum I (June 14, 2012)

Croatia did well against Italy this evening. The match was undecided. Most important, it was a match worth watching. I saw a good part of the second half, and the two teams were evenly matched most of the time. The upcoming game with Spain is likely to be worth watching once again. To my surprise, I am delighted by my own cheerful reaction. As always, I am for the better team, but this time around the better team may well be Croatian. Be that as it may, I have a hunch I will be watching the next game in the tournament. I may even be rooting for Croatia.

Addendum II (June 18, 2012)

But Croatia did poorly against Spain this evening. And I watched the whole game from start to finish. Sadly, Croatia was good only in defense. There was hardly any orchestrated attempt to score. In fact, there was none. Although Spain scored the only goal just a couple of minutes before the end of the game, Croatia would have lost the contest anyway. Italy was doing well enough against Ireland, and that was that. The end of the story. The future is quite bright, though. From now on, we will be spared from all the crap about Croatian soccer, may it rest in peace. There will be no more tales about all the wonderful things that are still in store. As far as Croatia is concerned, the ongoing European soccer tournament is history. Hooray!