Menurut Barry, kegugupan tersebut merupakan hal lumrah dalam pertandingan pembuka turnamen besar seperti Piala Dunia.

"Maybe that should be accepted, and maybe expected in the opening game of a World Cup," ujarnya.

Ia menambahkan bahwa tim salah mengambil keputusan dalam menerapkan strategi operan pendek dan panjang sehingga menghambat tempo permainan.

"From there, then we made some decisions where the energy was not free in our mind, playing long when we should play short, playing short when we should play long," tutur Barry.

Pihak kepelatihan sempat berharap eksekusi penalti dapat membuat pemain tampil lebih lepas dan menunjukkan karakter asli tim.

"Then you think the penalty would free us up, allow us to play more like us, look more like ourselves, but again we fall back into some fearful patterns," kata Barry.

Inggris kemudian mencetak gol kedua, tetapi keunggulan itu gagal dipertahankan setelah Kroasia mencetak gol penyeimbang di menit-menit akhir babak pertama.

"We get the second goal again.

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We're hoping that's the moment of the gears open, allow us to move forward in the game, but okay, we could see the second goal later on, and now we have to speak about that at half time," ucap Barry.