Croatia vs Japan: The Croatian national team secured their place in the quarterfinals of the 2022 FIFA World Cup after defeating Japan in a penalty shootout.
Japan headed into this 2022 FIFA World Cup Round of 16 match after topping Group E with six points. They defeated Spain and Germany in that process. Croatia, meanwhile, secured their place in the round of 16 with a second-place finish in Group F, with five points from three games.
In this match between Croatia and Japan at the 2022 FIFA World Cup, it was the latter who opened the scoring. Japan took the lead on the stroke of halftime, with Daizen Maeda scoring for the Asian nation.
Maya Yoshida won with a header inside the Croatia box after a cross from the right. Maeda reacted quickly to Yoshida’s header and scored the ball from close range. The scorecard remained the same at the end of the first half of this 2022 FIFA World Cup match between Croatia and Japan, with Japan heading into the interval break with a one-goal lead and Croatia trailing by one goal.
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Croatia vs Japan: Croatia 1(3) – 1(1) Japan in the round of 16 of the 2022 FIFA World Cup
However, Croatia restored equality 10 minutes into the second half. The goal came from Ivan Perisic. Dejan Lovren sent a cross into the Japan box from the right and Perisic, with a beautiful header, planted the ball into the bottom corner to level the score.
Neither side could find a winner in the remaining minutes of regulation time. Therefore, the match went to extra time. But Croatia and Japan played thirty minutes goalless and this FIFA World Cup Round of 16 game between Croatia and Japan went to a penalty shootout.
Japan’s Takumi Minamino stepped up to take the first penalty of the shootout in the match between Croatia and Japan. However, Minamino’s attempt was well saved by Croatian goalkeeper Dominik Livaković.
Nikola Vlasic took Croatia’s first penalty in the shootout and converted it from the penalty spot to give the European nation the lead.
For Japan, Kaoru Mitoma took the second penalty. Dominik Livaković once again managed a save as Japan failed to convert their first two penalties.
Marcelo Brozovic, who took Croatia’s second penalty in the shootout, and Takuma Asano, who took Japan’s third, both converted. Marko Livaja stepped up to take Croatia’s third penalty, but his shot hit the post. That gave Japan a ray of hope.
But Dominik Livaković saved Japan’s fourth penalty of the shootout, taken by Maya Yoshida, to move Croatia closer to the quarterfinals. Taking Croatia’s fifth corner, Mario Pasalic made no mistake from the spot and sealed his team’s qualification for the 2022 FIFA World Cup quarter-finals.
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