Croatia took a narrow but vital 1-0 win over Panama overnight Tuesday to Wednesday, moving to four points ahead of its final group game against Ghana and knocking Panama out of the tournament. The result means Croatia is highly likely to advance even if it loses to Ghana, and it could still finish top of the group in some scenarios.
Local media praised goalkeeper Dominik Livakovic, with 24sata writing that he “saved us.” The paper said his big stops delivered the win, while vecernji said Livakovic had to intervene repeatedly and that Ante Budimir’s goal brought Croatia closer to the next round. The coverage also noted that Croatia missed several chances and took advantage of a lapse by Orlando Mosquera.
The match carried a major milestone for Luka Modric, who made his 200th appearance for Croatia in official international matches. He became only the fourth player in history to reach 200 official caps, after Cristiano Ronaldo, who has 230, Kuwait’s Bader Al-Mutawa with 202, and Lionel Messi with 201.
Croatia now appears set for a possible clash with Ronaldo’s Portugal if it does not beat Ghana, a repeat of the teams’ round-of-16 meeting at the last European Championship. Portugal has won seven of the 10 meetings between the sides. In Group H, England and Ghana each have four points, Croatia has three, and Panama has none; Panama has been eliminated. England will clinch first place with a win, while a draw between Croatia and Ghana could send both through.
