Croatia vs England 12/07/18

12 July 2018

At the Luzhniki Arena in Moscow, Croatia and England will play against each other in a match that will determine one of two finalists of the 2018 FIFA World Cup in Russia. The Blazers have emerged as one of the most pleasant surprises of the tournament showing the most of all contestants already in the group stage, where they had all three victories finishing top of Group D ahead of Argentina, whom they have destroyed by three goals to nil. However, Zlatko Dalic’s team has slowed down a bit in the knockout stage, barely managing to secure their first World Cup semi-final after 1998 after eliminating Denmark and the hosts Russia, both on a penalty-shoot-out. On the other hand, England had a fairly simple task in the group stage, finishing second of Group G behind Belgium, with two wins and a loss, in which they have scored a total of eight goals. In the round of 16, the Three Lions have sent Colombia home after a penalty-shoot-out, with the match ended in a 1-1 draw. Gareth Southgate’s team had a much smoother job in the quarter-finals where they have comfortably outplayed Sweden, beating them by two goals to nil.

Nikola Kalinic has already left Russia following a severe discussion he had with the coach, while Ivan Strinic might have to skip the encounter due to a muscle strain. As for England, all players are fit and ready for the big showdown.