Liverpool defender Dejan Lovren hit out at the English media after Croatia's World Cup semifinal win against England.

Lovren was a defensive rock as Croatia came from behind to beat England in the semi-final on Wednesday and seal a date with France in Moscow on Sunday.

"It's something, for me, special. From my point of view I had people saying I had a difficult season but I don't agree with that," he told beIN Sports.

"I took Liverpool to the final of the Champions League and now with my national team we are in the final.

"I think people should recognise that I am also one of the best defenders in the world and not just talk nonsense."

Lovren is delighted that this current Croatian generation have finally lived up to, and now surpassed, the standards of the 1998 team which reached the semi-finals.

He continued: "This is something we will never forget. People are crying. It's something historical for us. We will never forget this. We beat our record from 20 years ago. We've had this weight on our shoulders all the time, and now people will never forget us.

"We have the chance to do something better, and hopefully we can do it on Sunday.

"It was tough first-half. We couldn't control the ball or control situations. They had also good chances, but second half we did it much, much better.

"In extra-time we showed we are still able with the fatigue to play our game."