Qatar 2022 World Cup: Croatia delivered historic coup, knocked out Brazil on penalties and are in top four

“Brazil are favourites, but never underestimate a Croatian”, had warned coach Zlatko Dalic on the eve of the duel that he would open the quarter-finals at the Education City Stadium. His men agreed with him. The second-placed teams in the world have impressed: they beat Verdeamarela on penalties, after drawing 1-1 in a great game, they entered the top four of the World Cup in Qatar and await the winner of Argentina and the Netherlands. With that dose of suffering and ecstasy that seems to accompany every step of the Balkans in this type of tournament.

“Brazil is the best team in the tournament. The quality, skills and value of their players are terrifying.”Dalic had been sincere, that he had exposed the recipe to counter the favorite: reduce spaces, cover the flanks, surround Neymar, take possession of the ball for as long as possible, move against the block and exploit the gaps that his opponent, in his offensive voracity, could allow him.

It seemed as simple to state as it was difficult to apply. However, his disciples followed the plan to the letter during the first half: they let Canarinha tinker as far as the midfield circle, pressed in order with Ivan Perisic and Mario Pasalic who entered midfield and, when they recovered the ball, the ‘they moved with precision making the axis in Luka Modric, his veteran puppeteer, to which the 37 years does not seem to affect. Furthermore, the Europeans chose to play at the pace that suited them and never got caught up in the frenzy proposed by their rival.

What did Brazil offer in return? The individual imbalance of Neymar and Vinícius was their best card, while their teammates failed to get along. The intermittent electricity of his two talents installed a latent sense of risk, but in the first chapter he failed to transform it into concrete possibilities.

The intrigue was how long the cast of the checkered shirt could sustain that level of mental demandseen that he played without margin for error in the last meters of his field, and, above all, physical: the Balkans had needed blood, sweat, tears and the saving hands of Dominik Livakovic in the penalty shoot-out to leave on the road on Monday the Japan, while the South Americans had solved the problem in half an hour against South Korea and then had measured their energies.

Dalic’s set has never been played, but, like a badly tied balloon, it gradually deflated in the second chapter. He didn’t lack good management in the centre, which was not integrated with depth, a deficit from which he suffered throughout the tournament (the coach changed four centre-forwards in these five matches). But each time it became more difficult for him to contain the yellow tide.

Tite renewed his offensive with Antony and Rodrygo, who entered very well and complicated on the flanks. The danger has been installed in the safest area Livakovicwho was increasing his figure in the second period: he neutralized four very clear plays and thus made it possible to sustain a zero that sent Croatia to extra time, an instance he knows very well: from his last seven previous matches in direct elimination cases in the World and European Championships, six had required 120 minutes of action.

The first fragment of that decisive half hour was the toss of a coin. The Europeans come out revitalized, draw again and also have a very clear opportunity to take the lead, but Brozovic is inaccurate on Petkovic’s reception on the edge of the box. Brazil, on the other hand, did not fail: Neymar, intermittent up to that moment, turned on the turbo, launched an anthology double wall between a thousand legs (first with Rodrygo and then with Lucas Paquetá), left Livakovic screwed up and came close the goal to be honest signs a great goal, his 77th with the yellow jersey, which allowed him to equal Pelé’s record as top scorer in the history of his team.

Used to business, the Balkan cast played, with a pure heart and risking deeply, the last chips in the last 15 minutes. And he obtained an award that seemed unattainable four minutes from the end and thanks to the fresh men put on the field by Dalic: Vlasic at the start, Orsic overflows on the left and Petkovic, with a shot, beats Alisson and transfers the definition on penalties.

From that unholy point located 11 meters from goal, the Europeans were infallible and once again they had great help from Livakovic, who saved Rodrygo’s early shot. Marquinhos’ shot that crashed into the right post eliminated Brazil for the fifth time in a row against a European rival (they had lost to France in 2006, the Netherlands in 2010, Germany in 2014 and Belgium in 2018) and has led the Croatians to third place once in a World Cup semi-final: they were third in 1998 and second in 2018. Now they are aiming for the last jump.