4 Takeaways from Croatia’s Win Over Ghana At The World Cup

Croatia was able to secure a second place finish in Group L after defeating Ghana 2-1 at Philadelphia Stadium on Saturday afternoon. It was a hard-earned victory for Croatia, which began the game slowly until it found a long-range goal from Petar Sučić. After Ghana mounted a comeback to equalize, Croatia pulled ahead for good with a late set-piece goal. 

Here are my thoughts on it all:

1. Sučić’s Goal Set The Tone

In the early stages of this game, there was very little offense for either team. That changed in the 31st minute when Mateo Kovacić found Petar Sučić in the middle of the field. The Inter Milan midfielder seemed surprised with how much space he had and opted to hit a powerful low shot inside the left post past Ghana goalkeeper Benjamin Asare.

For Sučić, it was just his second goal for the national team, but he continues to be an important player for head coach Zlatko Dalić after deciding to switch his national team affiliation from Bosnia and Herzegovina to Croatia in 2024. 

It was the first goal that Ghana conceded in this World Cup but the tone of the game changed. Prior to that, everything was defensive. The only other real chance for Croatia had been when Nikola Vlašić hit the post following a mistake. 

Following the goal, Croatia began to look more comfortable in possession. Its passes were more attack oriented through the remainder of the half. 

2. Ghana Had An Impressive Second-Half Response

After Sučić’s goal, Ghana was forced to chase a goal for the first time this tournament. Head coach Carlos Queiroz was only hired just before the tournament and his most important priority was to patch up the team’s leaky defense. 

Forced to attack, Queiroz made a series of changes at halftime, likely to seek to support the team’s attackers, including Manchester City winger Antoine Semenyo, who is the team’s best offensive player.

Those changes worked and at the start of the second half, Ghana began to generate more balls played deeper in Croatia’s half. 

In the 73rd, Ghana finally found its equalizer on a free kick from Ernest Nuamah that found central defender Derrick Luckassen. It took a long VAR review to confirm the goal, but ultimately it was given when it was judged any player Ghana had in an offside position on the free kick was not interfering with the play. 

3. A Flashback Performance By Modrić

In a tournament where players like Lionel Messi and Cristiano Ronaldo are defying age, Luka Modrić also put in a performance that was reminiscent of when he was arguably the best midfielder in the world. 

After Ghana scored, all the momentum was in favor of the Black Stars. The game was now even and Ghana had most of the possession and scoring chances in the second half.

Then Croatia quickly responded. Mario Pasalić, 31, fired a rocket of a shot in the 82nd that forced a great save from Asare. On the ensuing corner kick, 40-year-old Modrić, in his 201st cap, sent a perfect ball onto the head of Nikola Vlasic, who beat Asare.

In doing so, Modrić became the oldest player on record to ever record an assist at the World Cup. 

Modrić continued to play extremely well. On the defensive side, Modric was at his best where he broke up a series of plays and covered a ton of ground. 

There were many questions about whether Modrić would have the engine to run the team’s midfield in this tournament, but this was a great performance from him. 

Modrić was not alone, however, as long-time veterans Ivan Perišić and Mateo Kovacić were very important late in the game when Croatia needed to find another level. 

It was not a pretty win, but it was a win that required experience and a lot of hard work defensively. Croatia was up for the challenge. 

4. Both Teams Will Face Stern Tests In Round of 32

Ghana knew before the opening whistle that it had qualified for the knockout stages. Croatia knew it needed a result. When England moved ahead of Panama in the second half, these teams knew it was a race for second place in the group. 

For Croatia, it will next play the runner-up of Group K and that will very likely be either Colombia or Portugal. For Croatia, this will again where it will need to rely heavily on Modrić. Even at 40, he will be a huge asset to the team in difficult knockout games. 

For Ghana, it will next play the winner of Group K. Ghana will be the heavy underdog in that game and will have to raise its level above what it showed against England in a scoreless draw.