"The biggest defeat of all time": Devastating reaction for Slaven Bilic and Croatia after debacle against England

The 0-7 against England on Saturday evening in the Nations League was an "unnatural, unacceptable catastrophe", ruled the daily newspaper Jutarnji List . It added: "Not only do we not belong to the elite, we have become San Marino! The dreams of the quarter-finals have burst, waking up is more painful than after 20 beers."

Elsewhere in Croatia's media, the mood was just as bleak. "Desperate Croatia suffer the heaviest defeat in their history," wrote Index Sport . 24Sata called it a "huge disgrace!" while telegram.hr described it as "an unprecedented and deeply humiliating collapse."

England's papers, unsurprisingly, struck a very different tone. "England in seventh heaven. Men against boys. That was child's play," headlined the Daily Mail . The Sun said: "Thomas Tuchel's team caused a stir with one of the greatest away performances in the history of the England national team."

In Rijeka, Tuchel's side dominated from start to finish in front of 6,000 children and young people. UEFA had ordered the game to be played behind closed doors after racist misconduct by Croatian fans last year. One rule, though, allows children up to the age of 14 into the stadium free of charge, so the stands were still well filled.

Harry Kane (2), Jude Bellingham (1), Anthony Gordon (1), Bukayo Saka (2) and Morgan Rogers (1) fired the World Cup third-placed side to a sensational win, one fully deserved by that margin.

What did Croatia coach Slaven Bilic say?

Croatia coach Slaven Bilic called it "the biggest defeat of all time" and apologised to everyone. "I'm sorry. We are disappointed. I'm sorry for the fans, I'm sorry for the children in the stands. I'm sorry for all Croatian fans. I have just been with the players, we spoke briefly, and it is the worst thing for us. We would never have expected it," said the former Bundesliga and Premier League professional.

After three matches, Croatia have three points and sit third in Group 3 of Nations League A. Spain top the section with the maximum nine points, followed by England (6). Czechia (0) are bottom.