Doha: Stage is set for the first FIFA World Cup 2022 semi-final match between Argentina and Croatia here at the Lusail Stadium.
The Argentinians had won the World Cup title in both 1978 and 1986 but were denied in their last two trips to the final, losing to West Germany in 1990 and Germany eight years ago.In the 2018 tournament, Croatia cruised to a 3-0 victory against Argentina in the group stage and topped England in their first semifinal appearance but were defeated 4-2 by France in the championship game.
The late-career evolution of Lionel Messi into a clever creator operating behind the front line has intensified at this World Cup. He illustrated just how effective he can be with his superb defence-splitting pass to set up the opening goal in the quarter-final against the Netherlands.
With the exception of a 4-1 triumph over Canada in the group stage, the Croatians have been involved in tight, low-scoring contests. They battled Morocco and Belgium to scoreless draws during group play before defeating Japan and Brazil on penalty kicks after 1-1 results in the Round of 16 and quarterfinals, respectively.
The Croatians topped Japan 3-1 on penalties and converted all four of their attempts versus the Brazilians to reach the semifinals for the third time in six World Cup appearances.
With the ball, Croatia have their own diminutive veteran maestro in 37-year-old Luka Modric, whose ability to dictate the tempo, maintain possession and take his team forward into dangerous areas is fundamental for his country’s hopes of reaching successive World Cup finals.
Midfielder Nikola Vlasic set the tone for Croatia, scoring on their first attempt in both contests.
Forward Andrej Kramaric leads the club in non-penalty goals as he scored twice in the group stage victory against Canada. Veteran Ivan Perisic has recorded a goal and two assists in the tournament, giving him six goals and four assists in 15 matches across three World Cup appearances.
