Croatian midfielder Luka Modric feels that his sides opening Euro2012 fixture will be a very tough one.

The Croatians meet Republic of Ireland in Poznan on Sunday and the former Tottenham ace, who is set to join Manchester United, is expecting a difficult test from Giovanni Trapattoni's men.

"The first game is always difficult. There is a lot of tension, everyone wants to win and play well," Modric told Spurs TV Online.

"Whoever wins that game has a massive chance to go through. I hope we can win it. Ireland will be tough.

"We played against them last August and it was 0-0 and you could see at that time how hard it would be to beat them and break them down. They are very experienced, with an experienced coach.

"They have some very good players. It will be hard. Ireland are a nation, they like to fight, they have a strong, positive mentality. That's why it will be hard for us but we have to win the game if we want to have a chance of going through."

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