Argentina opened as the favorite at -200 on the moneyline with Croatia coming in as the underdog at +162. The total was set at 2.5 goals with the UNDER going 5-1 in Croatia’s last six matches. Argentina entered the tournament ranked No. 3 in the world, giving them a clear edge over 12th-ranked Croatia in our Argentina vs Croatia prediction.
Argentina Staves Off Dutch Comeback To Advance
It was a roller-coaster of a match but Argentina earned a 2-2 (4-3) win over Netherlands in penalties on Friday to secure a berth in the final four. After Nahuel Molina and Lionel Messi put Argentina up 2-0 through 73 minutes, it looked like they would cruise to victory, but Wout Weghorst scored in the 83rd minute and again in the 101st – virtually the last kick of regulation time – to tie the match. In penalties, goalkeeper Emiliano Martinez stopped each of the first two shots he faced to help Argentina advance.
It marked the second straight match for Argentina that was decided by penalties, following their win over Japan in the Round of 16. While the Argentines will be pleased with their play through the first 80-plus minutes of the match, they’ve shown a trend of collapsing under pressure in this tournament that could come back to bite them at some point.
Croatia Shocks Brazil To Earn Semifinal Berth
Croatia stunned the soccer world on Friday by defeating Brazil 1-1 (4-2) in penalties to advance to the semifinals for the second straight World Cup. The match was scoreless through 90 minutes with Neymar finally breaking the ice for Brazil in added time of the first extra period. Bruno Petkovic scored the crucial tying goal in the 117th minute before Croatia came out on top in penalties.
The Croats have had a history of tight matches at the World Cup, with five of their last six knockout-stage games going to extra time. Croatia has generally come out on top of those games with eight wins in their last 10 knockout matches, including five straight dating back to the 2018 World Cup.
Argentina: Keys To Victory
Argentina should have the edge in the attacking third with players like Messi and Julian Alvarez providing plenty of scoring threat. While they’ve shown some chinks in their armor on the defensive side, Argentina could definitely take over the match with some magic from Messi or one of their other weapons up front.
Croatia: Keys To Victory
While Croatia hasn’t shown a ton of attacking flair in this World Cup, they also haven’t given up many goals – just three in five matches. If they’ve got any chance at upsetting Argentina, it’ll likely be down to some tight defensive play.
Argentina is 6-4-1 in its last 11 matches.
The UNDER is 6-4-1 in Argentina’s last 11 matches.
Croatia is 8-6-1 in its last 15 matches.
