Croatia were "underestimated" by English pundits who lacked respect, says captain Luka Modric.
Midfielder Modric said the team had been motivated by people saying they would be "tired" after their previous two matches went to penalty shootouts.
"We showed again we were not tired," he said. "We dominated the game physically, mentally, in all aspects."
Kieran Trippier gave England the lead in Moscow, but Ivan Perisic levelled for Croatia before Mario Mandzukic scored the winning goal in the 109th minute.
"English journalists, pundits from television, they underestimated Croatia and that was a huge mistake," Real Madrid's Modric told ITV. "They should be more humble and respect more opponents.
"All these words from them we take, we were reading and we were saying, 'OK, today we will see who will be tired'."
England
Croatia, whose previous best World Cup performance was a third-place finish in 1998, face France in Moscow on Sunday.
"It is the biggest success in Croatian history in
Croatia defender Dejan Lovren said Modric deserves to win the Ballon d'Or if they win Sunday's final, describing his team-mate as the "best midfield player in the world".
The Liverpool centre-back also believes he should be considered one of the world's best defenders.
Lovren, 29, made 43 appearances for Liverpool last season as they finished fourth in the Premier League and reached the Champions League final.
Read also
But he was criticised for some of his performances during the
"I think people should recognise that I am also one of the best defenders in the world and not just talk nonsense," he told Bein Sports.
Source: BBC