- Croatia wins 4-2 on Penalties to stun Tournament Favourites, Brazil.
- Neymar’s record-equalling goal was not enough for the Brazilians
- Marquinhos and Rodrygo missed their penalties as Croatia advanced to the semis
In one of the biggest upsets in the history of the World Cup, Croatia stunned five-time champions Brazil with a thrilling 4-2 victory in the penalty shootout at the Education City Stadium.
Neymar’s record goal was vain as Croatia eliminated Brazil from the World Cup in a penalty shootout on Saturday after a 1-1 tie in 120 minutes. Croatia advanced to the semi-finals for the second time in a row after defeating Japan on penalties in the previous round and will now face either the Netherlands or Argentina, who play later.
Dominik Livaković heroics keep Croatia’s hopes alive.|PHOTO:CBS|
Favourite Brazilians
Brazil entered this match with the same status and expectations that they had at the start of the tournament: firm favourites. A sloppy start to the game planted a small seed of doubt, with Croatia acting in typical stubborn and mulish fashion, but few could have predicted the ensuing drama.
Brazil came out of the halftime break with renewed vigour, creating several scoring chances, three of which came from Neymar. They were unable, however, to overcome Croatian goalkeeper Dominik Livakovic, who made several crucial saves.
Croatia was non-existent as an attacking force, with Brazil dominating but unable to break through. Richarlison and Raphinha were sacrificed for Pedro and Anthony as Tite made some bold decisions, but it wasn’t enough to find the winner in 90 minutes.
Stubborn Croatia
Neymar’s Goal to Equal Pele’s Record.|PHOTO: CBS|
Brazil’s Neymar scored a spectacular goal to almost guarantee his team a place in the semi-finals. Three minutes from the end of extra time, Croatia substitute Bruno Petkovic’s left-footed equalizer broke Brazilian hearts at Doha’s Education City Stadium.
Croatia maintained their composure from the spot after Brazil’s Marquinhos and Rodrygo failed to convert. Croatia initially refused to be intimidated by their more illustrious opponents and successfully stifled most of Brazil’s early moves in the first half.
Penalty Misses
Rodrygo missed Brazil’s first penalty attempt, and Marquinhos hit the post on the team’s fourth attempt, while Croatia’s Nikola Vlasic, Lovro Majer, Luka Modric, and Mislav Orsic all converted.
Croatia’s fourth draw in five matches in Qatar came at Education City Stadium. Zlatko Dalic’s team hasn’t been the most exciting at this year’s tournament, but his players have produced some drama.
Brazil was aiming for their first semi-final appearance since 2014, having failed to reach the last four since hosting the tournament eight years ago, when the Selecao was humiliated 7-1 by Germany.
Brazil was attempting to defeat a European opponent in the World Cup knockout stage for the first time since the team’s last victory in the 2002 final against Germany.
Neymar, who tied Pele’s record as his country’s leading scorer with 77 goals, couldn’t hold back the tears at the end. Rodrygo, Modric’s Real Madrid teammate, was also in tears.
Neymar in tears after being eliminated from the World Cup.|PHOTO:CBS|
What the Results Mean
The late Croatia penalty win means they progress to the Semi-Finals, in which they face either Argentina or Netherlands in Qatar.
Croatia has now reached the World Cup semi-finals on all three occasions that they have advanced from the group stage (1998, 2018 and 2022).
You must be logged in to post a comment Login