SM
Inter Milan vs. Como: 7 hrs 44 mins
Upcoming predictions and previews
Collect News Data
CN
World Cup | Third-Place Playoff
Dec 17, 2022 at 3pm UK
Khalifa International Stadium
MN

Croatia
2 - 1
Morocco

Gvardiol (7'), Orsic (42')
FT(HT: 2-1)
Dari (9')
Ounahi (69'), Amallah (84')

World Cup 2022: Reasons for Croatia to be confident of beating Morocco

:Headline: World Cup 2022: Reasons for Croatia to be confident of beating Morocco:
Ahead of Saturday's World Cup 2022 third-place playoff between Croatia and Morocco, Sports Mole looks at reasons for Zlatko Dalic's side to be confident of victory.
Sports Mole

Croatia will endeavour to claim a second successive World Cup podium finish when they complete their Qatar 2022 campaign against Morocco in Saturday's third-place playoff at the Khalifa International Stadium.

The Checkered Ones were denied a second successive final appearance against France by a free-flowing Argentina, who came up trumps 3-0 in Tuesday's semi-final courtesy of Julian Alvarez's brace and a Lionel Messi penalty.

Zlatko Dalic's side now aim to win the consolation prize of a bronze medal against the first-ever African nation to reach the World Cup semi-finals, and the Croatia faithful can feel quietly optimistic about their side's chances of doing so.

Here, Sports Mole picks out three reasons for Croatia to be confident of beating Morocco and claiming a third-placed finish at the 2022 World Cup.


Record against African nations

Croatia and Morocco are renewing hostilities at the World Cup only a few weeks on from playing out a goalless stalemate in the group stage, and the Atlas Lions could have felt aggrieved not to have come away with all three points on the day.

However, that 0-0 draw continued an encouraging trend for Croatia in World Cup matches against African nations, as the 2018 runners-up remain unbeaten after taking on three separate teams from the continent at the globe's biggest tournament.

Furthermore, Croatia have navigated all three of those matches without conceding a single goal, recording an emphatic 4-0 win over Cameroon in the 2014 edition before seeing off Nigeria by two goals to nil four years later.

Croatia and Morocco will be meeting for just the third time in their nations' history following the second showdown last month, but the European nation will need to improve on their paltry tally of five shots from that game if they are to ensure that their unbeaten African streak continues.


European bronze medallists

Traditionally, European nations have excelled at picking themselves up from semi-final defeats and clinching the bronze medal at the World Cup, and Croatia will be desperate not to break a 44-year streak for their fellow continental counterparts at the Khalifa International Stadium.

Belgium's 2-0 win over England four years ago remarkably represented the 10th time in a row that the World Cup third-place playoff was won by a European nation - the last country from elsewhere to triumph in this match were the Brazil team of 1978.

That run also includes success in Croatia's only previous appearance in the bronze medal match in 1998, where they beat the Netherlands 2-1 in what was their first-ever World Cup as an independent nation, and no African side has ever got this far.

Since the bronze medal was last won by a non-European country, Germany (2), Belgium, the Netherlands, Croatia, Sweden, Poland, Italy, Turkey and France have all secured podium finishes for UEFA, but the Checkered Ones' extra-time superiority may not count for much, as not since 1986 has this match not finished in normal time.


Morocco's defensive dilemma

A few eyebrows were raised when Morocco managed to recover all of Nayef Aguerd, Noussair Mazraoui and Romain Saiss - the latter of whom was taken off on a stretcher against Portugal - for the semi-finals, but it was a risk that backfired heavily on Walid Regragui.

The trio dropped out one by one, with Aguerd being forced out of contention just before the first whistle blew, Saiss coming off just after the 20-minute mark and Mazraoui only being able to complete 45 minutes before joining his stricken teammates on the sidelines.

Regragui's plan for a five-man backline quickly fell apart against France, and none of the injured trio should be risked for the bronze medal match if they are not completely healthy, which spells optimism for a Croatia attack that have flattered to deceive at the World Cup so far.

While Dalic's out-and-out number nines have left a lot to be desired, 37-year-old Luka Modric will fly home as one of the standout midfielders of the tournament, while Ivan Perisic is out for a personal accolade of his own, as he needs just one more World Cup goal to hit a record-breaking seven for his country and leave Davor Suker in his wake.


Read more on Croatia vs Morocco


body check tags ::

amp_article__502090 : Collect and Make Data not in DataBase  : 
last updated article - 2022-12-16 16:23:50:
html db last update - 2022-12-16 16:23:50 :

ex - 7200 : read : write cache and make html
Read more!
Share this article now:


Sports Mole provides in-depth previews and predictions for every match from the biggest leagues and competitions in world football.
AL
Sign up for our FREE daily preview newsletter direct to your inbox!
Recommended Next on SM
France players react as Les Bleus reach World Cup final
Liverpool 'learn asking price' for Premier League forward
Premier League Table
TeamPWDLFAGDPTS
1Liverpool16123137162139
2Chelsea17105237191835
3Arsenal1796234161833
4Nottingham ForestNott'm Forest179442319431
5Bournemouth178452721628
6Aston Villa178452626028
7Manchester CityMan City178362925427
8Newcastle UnitedNewcastle177552721626
9Fulham176742422225
10Brighton & Hove AlbionBrighton176742726125
11Tottenham HotspurSpurs1772839251423
12Brentford177283232023
13Manchester UnitedMan Utd176472122-122
14West Ham UnitedWest Ham175572230-820
15Everton163761421-716
16Crystal Palace173771826-816
17Leicester CityLeicester173592137-1614
18Wolverhampton WanderersWolves1733112740-1312
19Ipswich TownIpswich172691632-1612
20Southampton1713131136-256
Scroll for more - Tap for full version


Sports Mole provides in-depth previews and predictions for every match from the biggest leagues and competitions in world football.
AL
Sign up for our FREE daily preview newsletter direct to your inbox!

Loading ...

Failed to load data.

history www

Rodri, Dias latest: Man City injury, suspension list for Everton battle

1

RD

Preview: Test Series: Australia vs. India - prediction, team news, series so far

2

PT

Badiashile, Lavia, James latest: Chelsea injury, suspension list vs. Fulham

NEW

3

BL

Martinez makes questionable Man United claim after Bournemouth defeat

4

MM

Man United 'transfer list two senior stars' as Amorim leads Old Trafford rebuild

5

MU

Preview: Denver Nuggets vs. Phoenix Suns - prediction, team news, form guide

6

PD

Liverpool 'learn asking price' for Premier League forward

7

L'

Mark Dolan, Isabel Webster exit GB News amid schedule changes

8

MD

Monday's Turkish Super Lig predictions including Istanbul Basaksehir vs. Kasimpasa

9

MT

Quartet walking suspension tightrope: Liverpool injury list for Leicester clash

10

QW


. . . . . . . . . . . . . . .