England football fans barred from Croatia match plan to watch it from a hill

Hundreds of England football supporters barred from a match in Croatia plan to watch it from a hill overlooking the stadium.

Croatia must play two home games behind closed doors as punishment after a swastika was mown into a pitch before a 2015 Euro qualifier against Italy.

But up to 500 England fans aim to get round being banned from the Uefa Nations League tie.

They will travel Rijeka hoping to watch from a hill as England get revenge for losing to Croatia in the World Cup semi-final three months ago.

The stadium, in Croatia’s third largest city, seats just 8,000.

Images taken from a nearby hill show the pitch can be clearly seen, prompting fans to take a gamble.

Dave Taylor, 35, of Shrewsbury, Shrops, said: “I think about 500 fans will go to Croatia.

“I think the plan is to soak up the atmosphere.”

He said Croatia could have ­arranged an extra friendly before the October 12 game so the ban would have been over.

He added: “It’s unfair on the England fans.”

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But Tihana Gorenc, a football supporter living in Croatia, warned fans will not be able to see anything from the hills.

A Rijeka tourist office spokesman said: “We’d advise England fans to look around and explore the area. There are bars and restaurants where the matches are on.”

Up to one million British ­holidaymakers are thought to have visited Croatia this summer, including Dubrovnik and Split.

England started their Nations League campaign on Saturday night with a game against Spain.

They will play Switzerland in a friendly on Tuesday.

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