World Cup 2022 – Croatia 1-1 Brazil AET (4-2 on pens)

by | Dec 9, 2022 | Global Football News | 0 comments

Share

Match report as Marquinhos and Rodrygo missed their spot-kicks to ensure Croatia prevailed; Neymar scored in extra-time to draw level with former striker Pele – a record held by the Brazilian great for 51 years; Bruno Petkovic hit a dramatic late leveller to send the tie to penalties

Bruno Petkovic celebrates after equalising for Croatia in extra time

Bruno Petkovic celebrates after equalising for Croatia in extra-time

Croatia stunned five-time world champions and tournament favourites Brazil in a dramatic 4-2 penalty shootout win to book a place in the World Cup semi-finals.

Brazil looked to be labouring to an extra-time win over their stubborn counterparts thanks to a moment of magic from forward Neymar, who wrote himself into the history books by drawing level with Brazilian great Pele’s all-time goalscoring record of 77.

Croatia probed pragmatically, throughout while restricting and stifling Brazil’s usual rhythm before succumbing to Neymar’s brilliance in the first half of extra-time – it was very nearly checkmate.

However there was a late twist in the enchanting tale when Bruno Petkovic latched onto Mislav Orsic’s cross, benefitting from a cruel Marquinhos deflection which wrong-footed Alisson, to put Croatia on level terms with their only shot on target in the 117th minute and take the game to penalties.

Marquinhos and Rodrygo then both missed their spot-kicks in the shootout, while Croatia scored all four of theirs to defy belief and ensure progression to the last four of the tournament.

Croatia will face either Argentina or the Netherlands, who play later on Friday night, for a place in the final. The winner of the first quarter-final match at both 2014 and 2018 editions of the World Cup went on to win the tournament – could that be a telling omen for the 2018 runners-up?


Share

Related Posts

Vinicius Jr: Javier Tebas says LaLiga could eliminate racism in six months if given power to do so

Vinicius Jr: Javier Tebas says LaLiga could eliminate racism in six months if given power to do so

LaLiga president says he would back Vinicius Jr to walk off the pitch if the Real Madrid star faced further racist abuse; outspoken Javier Tebas labelled “embarrassing” and “horribly out of touch” after extraordinary and uncomfortable 86-minute news conference LaLiga president Javier Tebas claims his organisation could eradicate racism from Spanish football in six months […]

Comments

What do you think?

0 Comments

Submit a Comment

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

Learn More

Related Posts

Evan Ferguson: Man Utd and Tottenham identify Brighton striker as future target

Evan Ferguson: Man Utd and Tottenham identify Brighton striker as future target

Manchester United and Spurs have identified Brighton striker Evan Ferguson as a transfer target for the summer of 2024; Manchester City also interested in Republic of Ireland international; 18-year-old has scored 10 goals in all competitions this season Manchester United and Tottenham have earmarked Brighton’s Evan Ferguson as a strong candidate to lead their line […]

read more