Playing at home, Portugal did not hesitate to push up their attacking formation from the very first minutes. With a quality squad, they easily controlled the game and created countless opportunities.
And the home team soon opened the scoring in the 7th minute thanks to the pair currently playing for MU. Bruno Fernandes played the role of creator with a smart pass for Diogo Dalot to run down and finish through the legs of goalkeeper Livakovic.
With an early goal, Portugal slowed down their attack and Croatia had a chance to attack. However, the away team did not have time to find the equalizer before conceding a second goal. In the 34th minute, Nuno Mendes crossed the ball from the left wing for Cristiano Ronaldo to tap in from close range, helping Portugal take a 2-0 lead.
But while Portugal was in high spirits, Croatia unexpectedly scored a goal to narrow the gap in the 41st minute. Dalot, in an attempt to block Sosa’s cross, accidentally put the ball into his own net. The situation was so fast that goalkeeper Costa had no time to react. 2-1 in favor of Portugal was also the score of the first half.
In the second half, coach Roberto Martinez made a few adjustments to the Portuguese squad to ensure safety. Croatia pressed forward to attack while Portugal switched to a tight defense and quick counterattack.
This style of play prevented the away team from focusing all their efforts on the attack because they were afraid of the opponent’s “counterattack”. Both teams had good opportunities in the second half but failed to take advantage.
In the end, Portugal narrowly beat Croatia, thereby winning all 3 points. They are currently ranked 2nd in Group 1 of League A due to being behind Poland in terms of goals scored.
Portugal vs Croatia line-up
Portugal: Costa, Dalot, Dias, Inacio (Antonio Silva 77′), Mendes, Bernardo Silva, Bruno Fernandes, Vitinha (Pedro Goncalves 90′), Neto (Semedo 46′), Ronaldo (Diogo Jota 87′), Leao (Joao Neves 46′)
Croatia: Livakovic, Sutalo, Pongracic (Caleta-Car 46′), Gvardiol, Jakic (Petar Sucic 77′), Pasalic (Luka Sucic 67′), Kovacic, Baturina (Matanovic 61′), Sosa, Modric (Perisic 77′), Kramaric