Croatia and Portugal drew 1-1 in the sixth and final round of the Nations League group stage. With the draw, combined with Scotland’s 2-1 victory over Poland, both Croatia and Portugal guaranteed their qualification for the next stage of the competition.
The duel took place at the Poljud Stadium, in Croatia. João Félix and Gvardiol scored the goals in the match.
Croatia x Portugal: how it was
In a game that promised more passing than anything else, Portugal went to the field without its big star: Cristiano Ronaldo. But that didn’t stop the team from taking the lead.
In the 32nd minute, João Félix opened the scoring. Croatia threatened a few times, but the ball didn’t go in. The Portuguese team knew how to control the game and went into the break with a one-goal lead.
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At the break, Croatia had a challenge. Due to the influence of the game between Poland and Scotland, Modric’s team needed to win. To do this, he continued attacking and insisting.
Starting to be helped by the result of the game that was happening simultaneously, Croatia managed to find the net 17 minutes into the second half, but due to the detail, it was disallowed for offside. Gvardiol was the one who had been the author.
Just three minutes later, the player didn’t give up and scored another. This time, it was valid. Gvardiol scored at twenty in the second half and left everything the same.
Croatia x Portugal: goals
The first goal of the match came in the 32nd minute of the first half. João Félix stood out when he took advantage of a precise throw from Otávio, who found the attacker free behind the defense. João Félix knew how to work and dominate the ball, giving Croatia’s goalkeeper Livakovic no chance of saving.
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In the 20th minute of the second half, Croatia looked for theirs. Jakic made a great play on the right of the area and crossed the ball. Gvardiol managed to finish with precision, beating goalkeeper José Sá.
Croatia x Portugal: lineups
Croatia lineup: Livakovic, Sutalo, Caleta-Car, Gvardiol, Perisic (Petar Sucic, aos 12´/2ºT), Modric, Kovacic (Mario Pasalic, interval), Sosa (Jakic, interval), Kramaric, Matanovic, Baturina.
Portugal lineup: José Sá, Semedo, Tomás Araújo, Renato Veiga, João Cancelo, João Neves, Otávio (Francisco Conceição, at 25´/2nd Q), Vitinha, Nuno Mendes (Dalot, at 34´/2nd Q), Rafael Leão (Fábio Silva, at 25´/2nd T), João Félix.
