Croatia vs England: 5 things we learned
Croatia’s amazing run continues, as the Vatreni knocked England off to reach its first-ever final. And several of its stars did not hesitate to hit out at the English media for a “lack of respect”, something that some in the English press did not take too kindly. Some even went so far as to deny it, but the evidence was clearly there to see. Whether it was due to a lack of respect of Croatia, or just a general growing confidence – a natural thing given that the team was in the semi-finals – is subject to debate, perhaps. After all, once one gets to the semi’s, it’s really anyone’s game.
However, if one really wants to be honest, England and its loyal supporters did underestimate Croatia. After all, the Three Lions are a younger and seemingly more vibrant squad, and Zlatko Dalic’s side had played 30 extra minutes of football than Gareth Southgate’s troops. Pundits hoped that this factor would be Croatia’s undoing and that England would face France in the big showpiece, with a potential to win its first World Cup since 1966.
Well, Croatia had other plans, and perhaps motivated by what it felt was a “lack of respect”, the Vatreni threw everything into this game and came out on top. Here are five things we learned from Croatia’s hard-fought win over England.
1. Croatia makes history, and are truly dark horses
Croatia will be the second smallest team to feature in a World Cup final after Uruguay. And the Vatreni have now gone one step further than its 1998 heroes, who fell at the semi-finals stage and settled for a third-place medal.
Much has been made of this Croatia side as dark horses. Well, should Dalic’s side win it, Croatia can’t be called “dark horses” anymore. The Vatreni will be world champions – something only a handful of sides can lay claim to. Even if Croatia don’t, however, a runners-up medal at a World Cup many didn’t expect the team to even get out of the group stage is certainly nothing to sniff at.
However, this side will want more, and it does deserve it after having a fine tournament. With a perfect six wins out of six to get to this stage, one can certainly bet that Dalic’s side will be fired up to prove that the underdogs can bite once again and win what would be the biggest sporting title in the nation’s history.
2. Mario Mandzukic proves to be the game decider…again
It was his equalizer that forced the game to extra time and penalties against Denmark, and this time, Mandzukic’s late goal helped his team write its name in history. Croatia are through to the finals for the first ever time, and the 32-year-old’s late goal is the reason. Despite showing obvious signs of injury, the Juventus star managed to muster up enough energy to be a constant nuisance for England’s defenders, and got the goal he thoroughly deserved in extra time to send England packing.
Despite struggling with a potential injury, Mandzukic played nearly the entire 120 minutes before being subbed off following his goal. Croatia will hope that the lanky attacker can shake it off to feature in the final – as he also has a knack of scoring vital goals in finals. His overhead kick against Real Madrid gave Juventus a glimmer of hope, and in 2013, he opened the scoring for Bayern Munich as die Roten went on to beat Borussia Dortmund 2-1.
3. England’s tactical naivete exposed
After going 1-0 up thanks to Kieran Tripper’s brilliant free-kick, one could sense England’s supporters already dreaming of the final. However, the Three Lions failed to capitalize on its advantage and eventually, Croatia began to turn the screws. And once the Vatreni had seized control, it was virtually impossible for England to get back in the game.
The rough and tumble tactics from Croatia certainly didn’t help England, who were justifiably frustrated by some of the hyper-aggressive actions of many of Croatia’s players, including defender Dejan Lovren and midfielder Ante Rebic. Both players, in another game, could have been sent off for at least two of their bad fouls, but managed to remain on the pitch until Rebic – perhaps wisely due to his seemingly angry nature – was subbed off.
England has tried to avoid the “long ball” approach that other teams have unfortunately mocked it for, but when the going got tough, it reverted to some of its bad habits.
4. Harry Kane appears to be suffering from a burn-out
Since netting a penalty against Colombia, Kane has seen his productivity drop off. Although he’s still the clear lock to win the Golden Shoe, he’s failed to find the back of the net in his last two games. Notably, he missed two good chances against Croatia that certainly would have put the tie to bed and denied the Vatreni any hope of finding its way back into the contest.
Despite this, he’s cemented his status as one of the top no. 9’s in the game and has been an excellent skipper throughout. He’ll be hoping, however, to end his mini-drought as England face Belgium on Saturday as the Three Lions will hope to end their tournament in Russia on a decent note.
5. Gareth Southgate has found a great formula
Yes, he wasn’t able to lead England into the finals. But Southgate can be very proud of his work at this summer’s World Cup. He’s done a fine job of trying to banish some of England’s bad habits and help the team to play more exciting and efficient football. With plenty of young stars waiting in the wings, with England’s u-17 and u-20 teams winning the youth World Cups, the future looks bright, and even more so with Southgate on the bench.
Should England win the third place medal on Saturday, it’d be a great launching board for this ambitious side. And even if they don’t, it shouldn’t be a blemish on an otherwise solid showing for a team who have certainly exceeded expectations in Russia this summer.
