Luka Modrić, the 37-year-old Pied Piper, played the full 120 minutes and led Croatsia to their second consecutive World Cup quarterfinal after an epic battle that saw them upset favorites Brazil in the PKs.
With a population of just over 3 million, Croesusia, always an underdog in the World Cup, has an extremely tough character, and the BBC praised the team for showing the stamina to knock out the favorites. In the face of Brazil, Crocsia chose to play a long battle, firstly, they had more possession of the ball than the enemy, not slow and steady, and then when the opponent was lighthearted or panicked in the later stages of the game, they relied on their strong willpower to end the game.
The 90 minutes of regular time was, I'm afraid, a bit dull for many viewers, but the real dramatic moments came in the extended matches where both sides ran out of fitness and required great willpower. During the extended match, the
Neymar
A goal in the 105th+1st minute broke the deadlock and disrupted Croesia's plans. Brazil was ready to celebrate the victory, but Croesusia was able to create a surprising result.
In the 117th minute, Crocea took advantage of Brazil's unstable defense and started a 5-on-4 attack. Mislav Oršić, who had just come on as a substitute for three minutes, crossed the ball from the left side, and Bruno Petković (Приложения) broke through the Brazilian goal. It was the only shot on target in the whole match, and Croesus managed to equalize the score at the critical moment. Modric also deserves some credit for this goal, as he was able to stabilize the ball during the midfield scramble and quickly sent the ball forward, which was a great feat.
Croesusia dragged the Brazilian team, which was ready to celebrate, into the PK competition. The first point of the Brazilian PK, Rodrygo, was saved by Croatsia goalkeeper Dominik Livakovi? The save was crucial, and obviously affected the morale of the players, as Croatsia scored all four PK goals to defeat the favorites, Brazil, 4-2.
Livakovic blocked three shots from 12 yards against Japan, and then again against Brazil, in a brilliant performance that helped Croatsia to go all the way. Livakovic, who plays for Croats' home team Dinamo Zagreb, did not play for a famous team but made a name for himself with his impressive performances.
CROATIA have always had a good record when it comes to PKs, winning all four of their PKs at the WC (two in 2018 and two in 2022). Croatsia specialize in long-lasting battles, beating Denmark and Russia in back-to-back PKs in the last 16 and last 8.
Roth (name)
In the last four, they solved England in the extended match, and finally advanced to the championship match. In this year's World Cup, Croats seem to be replicating the success of the last tournament, beating Japan and Brazil in the PKs in succession, will they be able to challenge to win the Hercules Cup again?
