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Argentina and Croatia
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Matchday 20 Live Blog: Argentina see off Croatia
Join us for Matchday 20 as we bring you the key moments and highlights from today's FIFA World Cup fixture.
Argentina and Croatia
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By SBS Sport
Source: SBS
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Full-time - Argentina advance
Argentina are clear after defeating Croatia 3-0 in the first semi-final.
You can find the full replay and highlights for this match soon via the SBS On Demand match hub:
Thanks for following the live blog!
You can find the full replay and highlights for this match soon via the SBS On Demand match hub:
Thanks for following the live blog!
Messi creates a third!
69' - Messi turns Gvardiol inside-out before feeding a pass to Alvarez for a calm finish - Argentina go 3-0 up!
The second half is under way
Kick-off in the second half in this Argentina v Croatia semi-final.
Argentina are ahead but you can't write this Croatia side off!
Argentina are ahead but you can't write this Croatia side off!
That's the half at Lusail Stadium
Argentina go into the break 2-0 up against Croatia after a Messi penalty and Alvarez goal
Alvarez runs the entire length of the field to score!!
Golazo to Alvarez! He runs the whole field to score on the counter!
Argentina are 2-0 up!
Argentina are 2-0 up!
Messi scores!
34' - Messi converts the penalty with conviction, blasting it into the top corner!
Argentina are 1-0 up!
Argentina are 1-0 up!
Penalty to Argentina!
Livakovic is deemed to have fouled Alvarez and a penalty is given!
Kick-off in the semi-final! Argentina v Croatia
We're under way in the first semi-final at Lusail Stadium.
Messi v Modric - let's see how each team approaches the opening minutes.
Messi v Modric - let's see how each team approaches the opening minutes.
Head-to-Head: Argentina v Croatia
· Argentina and Croatia have played each other five times in international matches. Both teams recorded two wins, and there was one draw.
· This will be the third meeting between Argentina and Croatia at the World Cup. Both teams won one of the previous meetings.
· Argentina beat Croatia 1-0 in Bordeaux in the 1998 World Cup group stage, when both nations had already secured qualification. Mauricio Pineda (36') netted the only goal in the match.
· Croatia defeated Argentina 3-0 in Nizhny Novgorod in the 2018 group stage through goals by Ante Rebic (53'), Luka Modric (80') and Ivan Rakitic (90+1').
· Besides their two World Cup meetings, Argentina and Croatia faced each other in three friendly matches. These resulted in a 0-0 draw in Zagreb (4 June 1994), a 3-2 Croatia win in Basel (1 March 2006) and a 2-1 Argentina win in London (12 November 2014).
· In that friendly match between these countries in Basel on 1 March 2006 (3-2 Croatia win), Lionel Messi netted his first goal for Argentina and Luka Modric made his debut for Croatia. Argentina coach Lionel Scaloni was an unused sub.
· Messi scored the winning goal for Argentina in that 2-1 friendly victory over Croatia at Upton Park in London in November 2014.
· Messi and Modric played 26 times against each other in club and international football (22 of those matches were El Clásicos between FC Barcelona and Real Madrid). Modric has an advantage over Messi with a W12-D5-L9 record in those 26 games.
· Rodrigo De Paul/Nahuel Molina and Ivo Grbic (Atlético Madrid), Lautaro Martínez and Marcelo Brozovic (Internazionale), and Cristian Romero and Ivan Perišic (Tottenham Hotspur) are club teammates who could face each other in this game.
· Based on Gracenote's World Cup predictions, Argentina have a 66% chance of progressing to the final, Croatia's 34%.
Courtesy of Gracenote
· This will be the third meeting between Argentina and Croatia at the World Cup. Both teams won one of the previous meetings.
· Argentina beat Croatia 1-0 in Bordeaux in the 1998 World Cup group stage, when both nations had already secured qualification. Mauricio Pineda (36') netted the only goal in the match.
· Croatia defeated Argentina 3-0 in Nizhny Novgorod in the 2018 group stage through goals by Ante Rebic (53'), Luka Modric (80') and Ivan Rakitic (90+1').
· Besides their two World Cup meetings, Argentina and Croatia faced each other in three friendly matches. These resulted in a 0-0 draw in Zagreb (4 June 1994), a 3-2 Croatia win in Basel (1 March 2006) and a 2-1 Argentina win in London (12 November 2014).
· In that friendly match between these countries in Basel on 1 March 2006 (3-2 Croatia win), Lionel Messi netted his first goal for Argentina and Luka Modric made his debut for Croatia. Argentina coach Lionel Scaloni was an unused sub.
· Messi scored the winning goal for Argentina in that 2-1 friendly victory over Croatia at Upton Park in London in November 2014.
· Messi and Modric played 26 times against each other in club and international football (22 of those matches were El Clásicos between FC Barcelona and Real Madrid). Modric has an advantage over Messi with a W12-D5-L9 record in those 26 games.
· Rodrigo De Paul/Nahuel Molina and Ivo Grbic (Atlético Madrid), Lautaro Martínez and Marcelo Brozovic (Internazionale), and Cristian Romero and Ivan Perišic (Tottenham Hotspur) are club teammates who could face each other in this game.
· Based on Gracenote's World Cup predictions, Argentina have a 66% chance of progressing to the final, Croatia's 34%.
Courtesy of Gracenote
Argentina Stats
· Based on Gracenote's World Cup predictions, Argentina (41%) are the favourites to lift the trophy, followed by France (26%), Morocco (17%) and Croatia (16%).
· Argentina can reach their sixth World Cup final, after 1930, 1978, 1986, 1990 and 2014. Argentina won the trophy in 1978 (as hosts) and 1986, and were runners-up in 1930, 1990 and 2014.
· Only (West) Germany (8), Brazil (6) and Italy (6) have played as many World Cup finals as Argentina (5).
· Argentina have progressed from all four of their semi-finals at the World Cup. La Albiceleste beat USA 6-1 in 1930, defeated Belgium 2-0 in 1986 (two goals Diego Maradona), and both Italy (1990) and Netherlands (2014) were eliminated after a penalty shootout. Note: they reached the final in 1978 after progressing from the second group stage
· Argentina lost only one of their last 41 international fixtures (W28-D12-L1, matches decided by a penalty shootout are classed as a draw): a 2-1 defeat to Saudi Arabia in Lusail in their opening match of this tournament.
· Argentina (6) have been involved in the most penalty shootouts and have claimed the most shootout victories (5) in World Cup history. Argentina only lost on penalties to hosts Germany in the 2006 quarter-finals. Lionel Messi and Lionel Scaloni were unused substitutes in that game against Germany.
· Argentina have scored multiple goals in four successive World Cup matches for the second time, after 1930-1934 (5). Since 1986, only one nation scored more than once in five successive World Cup fixtures: Brazil in 2002 (5 in a row).
· Argentina have scored in all their 14 matches in 2022 (aggregate score of 35-7), since a 0-0 World Cup qualifying draw at home against Brazil on 16 November 2021.
· Rodrigo De Paul (49) and Leandro Paredes (49) can make their 50th senior appearance for Argentina.
· Marcos Acuña and Gonzalo Montiel are suspended.
Courtesy of Gracenote
· Argentina can reach their sixth World Cup final, after 1930, 1978, 1986, 1990 and 2014. Argentina won the trophy in 1978 (as hosts) and 1986, and were runners-up in 1930, 1990 and 2014.
· Only (West) Germany (8), Brazil (6) and Italy (6) have played as many World Cup finals as Argentina (5).
· Argentina have progressed from all four of their semi-finals at the World Cup. La Albiceleste beat USA 6-1 in 1930, defeated Belgium 2-0 in 1986 (two goals Diego Maradona), and both Italy (1990) and Netherlands (2014) were eliminated after a penalty shootout. Note: they reached the final in 1978 after progressing from the second group stage
· Argentina lost only one of their last 41 international fixtures (W28-D12-L1, matches decided by a penalty shootout are classed as a draw): a 2-1 defeat to Saudi Arabia in Lusail in their opening match of this tournament.
· Argentina (6) have been involved in the most penalty shootouts and have claimed the most shootout victories (5) in World Cup history. Argentina only lost on penalties to hosts Germany in the 2006 quarter-finals. Lionel Messi and Lionel Scaloni were unused substitutes in that game against Germany.
· Argentina have scored multiple goals in four successive World Cup matches for the second time, after 1930-1934 (5). Since 1986, only one nation scored more than once in five successive World Cup fixtures: Brazil in 2002 (5 in a row).
· Argentina have scored in all their 14 matches in 2022 (aggregate score of 35-7), since a 0-0 World Cup qualifying draw at home against Brazil on 16 November 2021.
· Rodrigo De Paul (49) and Leandro Paredes (49) can make their 50th senior appearance for Argentina.
· Marcos Acuña and Gonzalo Montiel are suspended.
Courtesy of Gracenote
Croatia Stats
· Croatia have reached the World Cup semi-finals for the third time in six appearances. They lost 2-1 to hosts France in 1998 (on their debut) and beat England 2-1 after extra time in 2018.
· Croatia lost 4-2 against France in the 2018 World Cup final in Moscow on 15 July 2018. Only West Germany (runners-up 1986, winners 1990) and Brazil (runners-up 1998, winners 2002) have won the World Cup after being runners-up in the previous tournament.
· Croatia can become the first team to reach the World Cup final in successive editions since Brazil (3, 1994-2002). Note: France can also reach the final when they face Morocco on 14 December.
· Croatia can become the second country to come on top against both Brazil and Argentina in a single World Cup knockout stage, after Germany in 2014 (7-1 versus Brazil in semi-finals and 1-0 after extra time versus Argentina in the final).
· Croatia lost only one of their last 21 matches (W12-D8-L1, game decided by a penalty shootout classed as a draw), a 3-0 Nations League defeat versus Austria in Osijek on 3 June.
· Croatia did not score the opening goal in any of their last nine World Cup games (conceded the opening goal seven times and drew 0-0 twice).
· Croatia have won all four of their World Cup penalty shootouts. Only Argentina (5 from 6) and (West) Germany (4 from 4) have won as many World Cup penalty shootouts as Croatia (4 from 4).
· Croatia converted 14 of their 18 penalties in those four shootouts (78%). Their opponents only converted eight of their 18 penalties (44%).
· Of Croatia's last nine major tournament (World Cup/EUROs) knockout phase matches, eight went to extra time. The only exception in that run was a 4-2 defeat versus France in the 2018 World Cup final.
· Croatia can become the first team to be involved in as many as three penalty shootouts at a single World Cup.
· Of the last 21 times a team scored the opening goal in a World Cup knockout match, only four teams failed to advance/win: Russia in the 2018 quarter-finals, England in the 2018 semi-finals, Japan in the 2022 round of last 16 and Brazil in the 2022 quarter-finals. All of those teams were eliminated by Croatia.
· Zlatko Dalic managed Croatia at the 2018 World Cup (runners-up). Five coaches have reached the final at a joint-record two World Cups: Vittorio Pozzo (Italy, 1934 & 1938), Helmut Schön (West Germany, 1966 & 1974), Franz Beckenbauer (West Germany, 1986 & 1990), Carlos Bilardo (Argentina, 1986 & 1990) and Mário Zagallo (Brazil, 1970 & 1998). Dalic and Didier Deschamps (France) can join them.
· Dalic' Croatia beat Argentina by a 3-0 scoreline in the 2018 World Cup group stage. Dalic can become the third coach to win multiple World Cup matches against Argentina, after Enzo Bearzot and Germany's Joachim Löw (both 2). Note: matches decided by penalty shootouts are classed as a draw.
Courtesy of Gracenote
· Croatia lost 4-2 against France in the 2018 World Cup final in Moscow on 15 July 2018. Only West Germany (runners-up 1986, winners 1990) and Brazil (runners-up 1998, winners 2002) have won the World Cup after being runners-up in the previous tournament.
· Croatia can become the first team to reach the World Cup final in successive editions since Brazil (3, 1994-2002). Note: France can also reach the final when they face Morocco on 14 December.
· Croatia can become the second country to come on top against both Brazil and Argentina in a single World Cup knockout stage, after Germany in 2014 (7-1 versus Brazil in semi-finals and 1-0 after extra time versus Argentina in the final).
· Croatia lost only one of their last 21 matches (W12-D8-L1, game decided by a penalty shootout classed as a draw), a 3-0 Nations League defeat versus Austria in Osijek on 3 June.
· Croatia did not score the opening goal in any of their last nine World Cup games (conceded the opening goal seven times and drew 0-0 twice).
· Croatia have won all four of their World Cup penalty shootouts. Only Argentina (5 from 6) and (West) Germany (4 from 4) have won as many World Cup penalty shootouts as Croatia (4 from 4).
· Croatia converted 14 of their 18 penalties in those four shootouts (78%). Their opponents only converted eight of their 18 penalties (44%).
· Of Croatia's last nine major tournament (World Cup/EUROs) knockout phase matches, eight went to extra time. The only exception in that run was a 4-2 defeat versus France in the 2018 World Cup final.
· Croatia can become the first team to be involved in as many as three penalty shootouts at a single World Cup.
· Of the last 21 times a team scored the opening goal in a World Cup knockout match, only four teams failed to advance/win: Russia in the 2018 quarter-finals, England in the 2018 semi-finals, Japan in the 2022 round of last 16 and Brazil in the 2022 quarter-finals. All of those teams were eliminated by Croatia.
· Zlatko Dalic managed Croatia at the 2018 World Cup (runners-up). Five coaches have reached the final at a joint-record two World Cups: Vittorio Pozzo (Italy, 1934 & 1938), Helmut Schön (West Germany, 1966 & 1974), Franz Beckenbauer (West Germany, 1986 & 1990), Carlos Bilardo (Argentina, 1986 & 1990) and Mário Zagallo (Brazil, 1970 & 1998). Dalic and Didier Deschamps (France) can join them.
· Dalic' Croatia beat Argentina by a 3-0 scoreline in the 2018 World Cup group stage. Dalic can become the third coach to win multiple World Cup matches against Argentina, after Enzo Bearzot and Germany's Joachim Löw (both 2). Note: matches decided by penalty shootouts are classed as a draw.
Courtesy of Gracenote
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