Bilic out to prove point

The pressure is all on Steve McClaren's men in the final Group E qualifier, as the hosts must avoid defeat to secure a place in Austria and Switzerland. Having finished third in the 1998 World Cup as a player, Bilic knows the current crop of talented Croats have a chance to make history of their own next summer.

"I told the players that we have already started our preparation for Euro 2008 - and we could not imagine a better test than against England," declared Bilic, who had spells at both West Ham and Everton. "I know the strengths of my team and this game will give us a real idea of just how much quality we have at the moment."

Midfielder Niko Kranjcar is one of the Barclays Premier League-based players in the Croatia squad.

The Portsmouth man knows full well the intense focus on the game - and what a shop window it provides for his international team-mates.

"We know that we are against one of the top sides in Europe and want to prove our qualities," said Kranjcar.

"We still don't think we've got enough respect in the world for the quality of the team. We believe that we really do have a quality side and we want to show it on the big stage."

Kranjcar added: "England are one of the big nations in football and everyone expects them to qualify for big competitions. It's up to them to prove they belong there."

The state of the Wembley pitch has again come in for criticism after cutting up badly during Croatia's training session on Tuesday night.

Only one half was used, with heat lamps in place to try to help battle against the wet conditions. The turf had taken a severe battering during last month's NFL match between the Miami Dolphins and New York Giants.