体坛英语新闻：New worry for Croatia: injured Niko Kranjcar

ZAGREB, May 25 (Xinhua)-- Saturday was a day for celebration in Croatian camp after Luka Modric won UEFA Champions League with Real Madrid and Niko Kranjcar earned a promotion to English Premier League with Queens Park Rangers.

Yet, there was some bad news, as well. Kranjcar started the playoff match against Derby County at Wembley Stadium but in the 33rd minute he was forced to leave the field due to injury.

Everybody in Croatian camp, including coach Niko Kovac, hope that Kranjcar left the field as a precaution after he felt a pain in his hamstring.

Kranjcar will have MRI on his injured leg on Monday in Zagreb and after the exam medical staff will evaluate his status.

This could be one more blow for Niko Kovac's team as he already lost left-back Ivan Strinic and forward Ivo Ilicevic due to injuries.

The 29-year old Kranjcar is very experienced player, one of only five footballers from current squad that represented Croatia at its last World Cup appearance in Germany 2006. His creativity would be a big asset in the Croatian midfield and his ability of sharp shooting with both legs would be a clear danger for Croatia's opponents.

There were also some good news for Niko Kovac from his medical staff. Team captain, 32-year old Darijo Srna was not seriously injured in his last match of the season for Donetsk Shakhtar and that 24-year old defender Domagoj Vida from Dynamo Kyiv, who sustained the injury in the same match as Srna, will be back in full strength in a day or two.

Croatian team continues to work hard in Austrian resort Bad Tatzmannsdorf, with two practice sessions scheduled for each day.

"We have to use time that we will spend here to work both on tactics and physical preparation of our players. I am very satisfied how the players reacted so far in the practice," Kovac said on Sunday.