James Milner has claimed Croatia will struggle to recover from the blow of losing Luka Modric for the World Cup qualifier against England.

Modric suffered a fractured fibula while playing for Tottenham in last Saturday's 2-1 victory over Birmingham and has been ruled out for six weeks.

The injury means the midfielder will miss next week's Wembley showdown in which an England victory will seal their place at next summer's finals in South Africa.

And Milner, who is expected to add to his debut cap in Saturday's friendly against Slovenia, said: "You've seen what a good player he has been since he's been in England. He makes Tottenham tick and it's the same at internationals.

"He will be a big miss but if we play well, we have enough quality to beat any team in the world.

"We're looking to keep confidence high in the first game against Slovenia and then finish the job in the second game and qualify for South Africa."