The Croatian national football team has hired an assistant who was previously banned for 10 games after leading fans in a Nazi chant.

Retired defender Josip Simunic missed the 2014 World Cup after celebrating Croatia’s playoff victory over Iceland by repeatedly shouting to fans through a microphone: “For the homeland!”

The crowd responded: “Ready!” This chant, called ‘Za dom spremni’, was used during the Nazi occupation of Croatia to encourage support for the fascist regime.

Fifa classed these actions as “discriminatory behaviour,” but the defender denied this, saying: “I did nothing wrong. I'm supporting my Croatia, my homeland. If someone has something against it, that's their problem.”

The former player, who was infamously booked three times by referee Graham Poll at the 2006 World Cup, did not play another game for his country after the ban.

At the time, Croatian federation president Davor Suker called the chant "an inappropriate gesture." However, upon Mr Simunic’s appointment as assistant to manager Ante Cacic, the former Arsenal striker performed a u-turn, saying: “We rely on Croatian brains.”

The move comes just two months after Croatia was docked a point and fined €100,000 (£70,000) following the discovery of a giant swastika that had been bleached into the pitch ahead of a European Championship qualifying match against Italy.

The country’s game with Bulgaria in October must also take place away from the Stadion Poljud in Split, where the swastika appeared in June.

The Italy match was being played behind closed doors after Croatian fans were heard chanting racist slogans during a game against Norway in March.