Pandemonium Peaks as Portugal Leave it Late against Croatia
A 41 year old Cristiano Ronaldo may no longer be worthy of all the plaudits for his countries performances, but its hard to keep him out the action. Portugal fought back from a goal down to win the tie against Croatia, in a thrilling second-half display.
Regardless of the first half xG being exactly 1/3 of the games total, there was still plenty to pick apart. Croatia looked to nullify Portugal’s threat by moving their midfield block across to the ball carrier. Advanced midfielders Vlašić and Sučić involved themselves in the most ground duels of the match (13 each), occupying Rafael Leão and Bruno Fernandes on Portugal’s attacking left-hand side. Reduced to a few chances from crosses and not much else, Portugal managed 1 shot on target from 9 (4 blocked, 4 off target) and looked slightly unimaginative in possession.
Croatia on the other hand, managed very little with just 31% possession. The three behind the striker, including the aforementioned Vlašić and Sučić, had potential to pry on goal, but 0 corners and 0 big chances left Croatia limited. Como’s inside left man Martin Baturina was looking to exploit any space left by Cancelo, but the right-back’s support staff of Rúben Dias and others put an end to that. Ante Budimir seemed unthreatening, leading to a half-time change that head coach Zlatko Dalić got spot on, altering the game for good.
Match Momentum Graph
A graphic showing the first half control of Portugal (Green) against RO32 opponents Croatia (Blue)
The second half kicked off with venom. Portugal set a higher tempo, but it was Croatia who struck first in the 53rd minute. The introduction of towering target-man Igor Matanović caused unforseen issues for Portugal’s defense, as a short cross was fought towards Perišić at the back post, who fired one low past Costa to earn Croatia the opening goal. Following this, Croatia kept to knocking at the door, all forward players combining with excellence. Petar Sučić in particular was a joy to watch, gliding through the spaces and even coming close to adding a goal.
Breaking News:
Cristiano Ronaldo’s 68th minute penalty secures his status as the oldest goalscorer in World Cup history.
Despite the Croatian clammer, Portugal came back with conviction. A Rafael Leão curling effort smacked off the crossbar, Ronaldo scored after a delicious touch but it was narrowly offside (a common theme of this second half). 5 minutes after Martínez stripped his lineup of 4 creative minds, including Bruno Fernandes and João Cancelo, Villarreal centre-back Renato Veiga was grappled to the ground in the box, giving Cristiano Ronaldo a chance to score his first ever World Cup knockout stage goal. He took it comfortably, becoming the oldest goalscorer in the competition’s history.
It was nearly all Croatia from then on, fellow veteran Luka Modrić and the outstanding Mateo Kovačić were running the show, but just when the chances started to dry up, disaster struck for the underdogs. Rafael Leão rather uncharacteristically pauses his dribble, only to fire in a fabulous ball atop the Croatian defenders. Arriving however, was substitute striker Gonçalo Ramos with an incredibly strong and well-timed leap to catch out the near-perfect Pongračić, sending his nation into the lead with 6 minutes of injury time to go. The header was Ronaldo-esque, both in action and context.
The Snickometer
Football’s latest technological innovation, influenced by its use in cricket, used to read and capture the exact moments of contact between the ball and the player. ‘Snicko’ technology allows for accurate and credible proof regarding illegal touches and touches before offsides.
But we weren’t done here, Croatia had failed to work a dangerous chance until arguably the final phase of play, where a cross supposedly found the upper frame of Matanović, then bouncing off Veiga’s back to eventually fall to Joško Gvardiol. His finish sent the fans in front into chaos, first for the chance to fight back in extra-time, but then for the VAR intervention that ultimately cancelled their lifeline and sent them home. Matanović’s touch looks inconclusive to the naked eye, however the release of VAR’s ‘Snickometer’ readings show a touch was felt from the striker. Nonetheless, this decision will haunt Croatia fans for years to come, as they pack their things with the looming thought of how close RO16 football could have been.
For Portugal, it is a historic night which sees their greatest ever player break even more records, whilst their World Cup campaign continues into a challenging clash against European Champions Spain. Can Cristiano captain his side to the quarter-finals, or will star-studded Spain stop him in his tracks?
