Bosnia and Herzegovina manager Sergej Barbarez has refused to apologise to former Nottingham Forest boss Steve Cooper

Former Nottingham Forest boss Steve Cooper(Image: Getty)

Bosnia and Herzegovina manager Sergej Barbarez has refused to apologise to Steve Cooper after claiming the Brondby boss dropped his player Benjamin Tahirovic from club action to help Wales’ World Cup bid.

Wales host Bosnia in a play-off semi-final in Cardiff on Thursday, with the winners at home to Italy or Northern Ireland next Tuesday.

Barbarez accused former Nottingham Forest boss Cooper of trying to help his native Wales on Monday, claims which were flatly rebuffed by Brondby, who said sidelining key Bosnia midfielder Tahirovic was a club decision.

Tahirovic subsequently apologised to Cooper for Barbarez’s words but the Bosnia head coach was in no mood to back down after arriving in Cardiff, saying he had created a “puzzle” for people to consider.

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“I don’t think I should apologise for anything,” Barbarez said at his pre-match press conference.

“The only important thing for me is that I trust my players and the idea of all this was to create a puzzle for you, so you can think about all these things.

“I had the idea to protect the player. That’s where all this talking was from.

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“I’ve known Benjamin for the last two years and I know what a good player he is and how he can be.

“So I think we should concentrate on the match, which is the most important thing for both teams.”

England and Nike have launched the new home, away and goalkeeper kits to be worn at this summer’s FIFA World Cup.