Mario Mandzukic scored the winning goal deep in extra time as Croatia beat England 2-1 in an utterly gripping World Cup semifinal in Moscow on Wednesday to set up a final date with France.
Advertisement
England were knocked out of the tournament by Croatia after their European rivals fought back from 1-0 down to win in extra-time.
Ivan Perisic worked tirelessly throughout the 120 minutes, and his goal sparked a Croatian comeback.
This time they did not need the shootout as, seemingly gaining in energy when they should have been on their knees, they took charge and won it when Mandzukic struck with a well-taken low shot in the 109th minute.
Look, this England team will be around for a while.
The latter free-scoring tournament saw England reach the tally in just three games, aided by an unconventional group stage format in which they drew 3-3 with Belgium, went to extra time and scored another as the game ended as a 4-4 draw.
‘We wasn’t talking about the final, we were just having a laugh with ya.
Croatia were a goal down against Denmark in the last 16 and against Russian Federation in the quarter-finals, before equalising and forcing extra time and penalty shootouts. “The things is we were just trying to like.we were happy and you weren’t happy for us being happy at that time”.
“I’m not surprised that Croatia have identified Raheem as a key player”, said the 47-year-old Southgate.
“We showed again that we were not exhausted – we dominated the game mentally and physically”.
Gareth Southgate’s team dominated the first half, and they had Croatia on the ropes for lengthy periods after Trippier’s fifth-minute free kick had given England the lead.
Gareth Southgate’s men continued to look good through the first half, but Harry Kane and Jesse Lingard both spurned chances to increase the lead.
But Ivan Perisic grabbed the equaliser in the 68th minute, getting an outstretched boot to Sime Vrsaljko’s cross and guiding the ball past England goalkeeper Jordan Pickford.
Perisic should have added another three minutes later when ragged defending presented him with a great shooting chance but he cannoned the ball against a post.
And it nearly happened early in the extra session when John Stones rose to meet a corner kick, only for Vrsaljko to clear the goal-bound header off the line.
“This is a miracle”.
Although Croatia are the most hard opponent England will have faced in the tournament, Southgate’s words suggest he will continue with his attacking formation and personnel.
England hadn’t really faced a truly world-class striker on their run to the semi-finals and in Mandzukic they came up against a player who was equipped to make the most of any deficiencies at the back.
Advertisement
Much of England’s attacking prowess has depended on Sterling’s sizzling pace, which has also helped them to pose considerable threat on the counter.
