Exclusive: Slaven Bilic - 'I'm not driven by money'

Slaven Bilic insists that it is national pride and not cash that motivates him and his Croatian players.

And the highly regarded Bilic, who ruled himself out of the West Ham job last week, believes that patriotic spirit can inspire Croatia to a third successive win over England in Zagreb on Wednesday.

Bilic, who will celebrate his 40th birthday just over an hour after the final whistle in the Maksimir Stadium, earns just under £140,000 a year compared to the £6million picked up by his England counterpart Fabio Capello.

But the former West Ham and Everton defender is adamant there is more to football than the huge financial rewards that can be enjoyed in the Premier League.

Bilic said: "Football has always meant a lot more to me than simply being a way to make money. First and foremost it must be about pride and achievement.

"I am not sure whether some people in England understand the pride and passion that we feel representing our country. But it means something special to us all.

"We are a relatively new nation on the international football front and every time we take the field there is a feeling that we have something to prove to the rest of the world.

"Money never enters my head when I am representing Croatia. We know that there is very little money in the Croatian game and that means when we overcome one of the wealthiest nations like England it only fills us with even more pride.

"I know the Croatian FA have limited resources to pay me and I accept that. Before I signed my two-year deal earlier in the year I was on far less than my present salary, but I didn't complain. I am not motivated by money. What Fabio Capello [left] or Premier League managers earn does not interest me.

"My mission is to take Croatia to the 2010 World Cup finals in South Africa. I will allow nothing else to get in the way.

"I have been asked about the West Ham job, and while I have always said that one day I would like to manage in England, at the moment my mind is only on the World Cup qualifiers.

"There are too many people depending on me to get Croatia to the

World Cup finals to think about other jobs or making more money." The unconventional Bilic is an inspirational character who has developed brilliant young talents such as Spurs' Luka Modric and Arsenal's Eduardo da Silva .

The Croatian spirit was demonstrated most vividly on the monsoon-like night at Wembley last November, when his team washed away England's hopes of going to Austria and Switzerland this summer.

And Bilic knows that England will not fancy going back to Zagreb, where the Croats have built a fearsome reputation.

"No one will fancy coming here," added Bilic. "We have proven that we can beat anyone at home.

"Our record down the years should strike fear into the hearts of England and all our World Cup opponents.

'We have an unbelievable home record in our recent qualification tournaments.

"England came here in the Euros expecting to win, but we were too strong for them and I believe it can be like that again. Our win at Wembley has given us great confidence and belief.

"With the passion our fans generate we feel unbeatable in Zagreb. There is no chance we will under-estimate England because they will come here seeking revenge after our two victories over them.

"But Fabio Capello is a shrewd coach and tactician and I expect a much harder fight for the qualification than we had in the European qualifiers."