Slaven Bilic New Croatia Coach

Former international defender Slaven Bilic was named as Croatia's new coach on Tuesday, replacing Zlatko Kranjcar who was sacked earlier this month.
The 37-year-old, a member of the team that took a surprise third place at the 1998 World Cup in France, will lead the qualifying campaign for Euro 2008.
'We face a tough, bumpy road in qualifying, but we're not afraid,' Bilic told reporters after his appointment. He will make his debut in a friendly against world champions Italy in Taranto on Aug. 16.

Bilic's assistant will be Aljosa Asanovic, a former team mate at Hajduk Split and the national team.
Croatia's poor performance at the World Cup finals in Germany - they exited at the group stage - led to Kranjcar's dismissal.