Mario Mandzukic scored in the 109th minute as Croatia came from behind to beat England 2-1 after extra time on Wednesday and reach their first World Cup final, where they will face France on Sunday, and send the Balkan nation into raptures.

England, appearing in their first semi-final since 1990, had looked on course for their first final since 1966 as they led through Kieran Trippier’s fifth-minute free kick and totally dominated the opening half.

Croatia, in their first semi since 1998, levelled through Ivan Perisic after 68 minutes and then looked the more dangerous side.

But just when it looked as if they would become the first team to appear in three shootouts at a single World Cup Mandzukic struck with a well-taken low shot.

England had got off to a flying start when Trippier curled a superb free kick into the top corner.

It was his first goal for his country, England’s 12th of the tournament and ninth from a set-piece, but they should have added more from open play as they revelled in the space they were being given in the first half.

The best chance for a second goal, however, was wasted by an unmarked Jesse Lingard when he curled wide when a goal looked certain. Croatia had been desperately poor but started to get a foothold in the game as the match rolled past the hour mark and Luka Modric’s influence grew.

England paid the price for those early misses when Perisic showed great determination to get in front of Kyle Walker to meet a curling Sime Vrsaljko cross and though his boot was arguably high, Walker was stooping and there were few complaints.

Perisic should have added another three minutes later when ragged defending presented him with a great shooting chance but he cannoned the ball against a post.

It was a different game from then on, with Croatia suddenly playing with accuracy and purpose as England lost their shape and composure, though Kane missed a chance to win it in stoppage time when he headed wide from a free kick.

Vrsaljko cleared a John Stones header off the line midway through the first extra period.

But it was Croatia who struck in the 109th minute when Perisic won a header on the edge of the box and the ball dropped for Mandzukic whose firm low finish beat Pickford.

(REUTERS)

Croatia have ended Russia’s World Cup dream after they won 4-3 on penalties to meet England in the World Cup semifinals in Moscow on Wednesday.

Croatia were better side of the match, but Villarreal midfielder Denis Cheryshev put Russia ahead in the 31st minute with curling shot from outside of the box.

Andrej Kramaric leveled the match for Croatia before the break from a Mario Mandzukic cross. Domagoj Vida gave Croatia advantage in extra-time from a Luka Modric corner.

Russia’s Defender Mario Fernandes brought his side level through a header in the 115th-minute to send the match to penalty shootout where Russians journey through their own World Cup ended in heartbreak at the Fisht Olympic Stadium.

England have finally ended the decades long penalty jinx after beating Colombia on spot kicks at 4-3 to set up a quarterfinal match against Sweden.

The 3-Lions got on the score-sheet when Harry Kane netted his 6th goal of the tournament from the spot, 8 minutes after the break. But, Yerry Mina equalized in the 3rd minute of injury time with a towering header to send the match into Extra Time.

In the shoot-out, Colombian keeper David Ospina saved Jordan Henderson’s penalty to give Colombia the advantage, but Mateus Uribe struck the crossbar and Jordan Pickford denied Carlos Bacca brilliantly to give Eric Dier the chance to win it for England.

 
Source: Presstv

A Swedish national football team that resisted having famed Zlatan Ibrahimović in its World Cup 2018 roster has stunned many by advancing to the quarter-finals of the top global soccer event.

It was a deflected shot from Emil Forsberg on the 66 minutes that sealed Sweden’s 1-0 victory against Switzerland in St Petersburg on Tuesday.

The mostly dull game between the two European teams had nothing special to offer to the cheerful Swedish and Swiss fans as both teams hardly reached the area and had very few shots on target.

However, the Swedes outclassed their opponents in creating a few clear chances in the box with Marcus Berg and Albin Ekdal missing notable opportunities in the first half. It was RB Leipzig’s Forsberg, whom many have seen as a right replacement for Zlatan, who struck with a deflection off Swiss defender Manuel Akanji.

Sweden could make it 2-0 in the stoppage time when the referee first awarded a penalty but then revised his decision after consulting the video assistant referee (VAR) to award a free kick, which was saved by Swiss goalie Yann Sommer.

Sweden opened the World Cup against the backdrop of rumors that Zlatan was ready to rejoin the national team two years after he had announced retirement. Coach Janne Andersson rejected the offer and said the towering forward, known for his long and productive career in some of Europe’s top clubs, would have no place in his World Cup squad.

In the quarter-finals, Sweden will take on the winner of the last game of the round of 16 between England and Colombia later on Tuesday.

The 2018 FIFA World Cup Russia will end on July 15 with the final match in Moscow. Teams will begin the round of eight on Friday.

Source: Presstv

Former Argentine great Diego Maradona has offered to coach his country for free, eight years after his last attempt ended in World Cup failure.

Maradona, who watched his side eliminated 4-3 by France last weekend in Kazan, was asked if he fancied another shot at the job, even though current coach Jorge Sampaoli has a contract until 2022.

“Yes, and I would do it for free,” Maradona said on a Venezuelan TV show. “I wouldn’t ask for anything in return.”

Maradona the coach

The former Boca Juniors and Napoli player coached Argentina at the 2010 World Cup, where his team were beaten 4-0 by Germany at the quarter-final stage.

Since then, the player who guided Argentina to their last World Cup win in 1986, has only coached two club sides in the United Arab Emirates.

He is still one of the most controversial faces in football, and he hit the headlines in Russia for his colourful appearances at Argentina games.

Never a stranger to extremes, Maradona produced some of this World Cup’s lasting images, celebrating victories in iconic poses, giving the finger to fans, and being helped into a hospitality box to be seen by doctors after suffering from low blood pressure.

“People think I am happy but my heart is heavy,” Maradona said about Argentina’s elimination. “I feel really bad that everything we built with so much effort we destroyed so easily.”

REUTERS

Belgium threw caution to the wind to reach the World Cup quarter-finals as substitute Nacer Chadli scored in the dying seconds against Japan to snatch a 3-2 comeback win on Monday and set up a clash with five-time champions Brazil.

The distraught Japanese, who went 2-0 up with goals by Genki Haraguchi and Takashi Inui early in the second half, fell to the turf after Chadli poked the ball home from Thomas Meunier’s cross four minutes into added time at the Rostov Arena.

Belgium, who had taken a conservative approach to the game, got back into contention with late goals by Jan Vertonghen and substitute Marouane Fellaini before Chadli struck.

“That’s what happens in the World Cup. It was a test of character and a test of the team. It tells you everything about this group of players,” said Belgium coach Roberto Martinez.

One of the most exciting teams of the group phase, Belgium faced an embarrassing exit but finally clicked to become the first team to win a World Cup knockout game from two goals down since West Germany beat England 3-2 after extra time in 1970.

Belgium’s ‘golden generation’ have now scored 12 goals in four games in Russia ahead of a mouthwatering last eight clash with Brazil who beat Mexico 2-0 earlier on Monday.

With center back Vincent Kompany back in the lineup for the first time since picking a groin strain in a warm-up game, Belgium had looked safe at the back but uninspired up front.

Both teams fought a tight midfield battle but their forwards froze in the area and Belgium’s wide players, Meunier and Yannick Carrasco, did not take risks going forward, effectively turning a 3-4-3 formation into a more conservative 5-2-3 system.

Japan got closest to a goal in a dull first half when Belgium keeper Thibaut Courtois let the ball slip from his hands and between his legs but recovered before it crossed the line.

The Japanese were ahead soon after the break, though, when Haraguchi beat the offside trap and ran into the area to beat Courtois with a cross-shot in the 48th minute.

Belgium responded but Hazard’s shot rattled the post and Japan doubled their tally in the 52nd when Inui picked up the ball 25 metres out and fired a missile into the back of the net.

The Red Devils were still struggling but they pulled a goal back after 69 minutes when Vertonghen looped a header from a high clearance back across goal into the far top corner.

The momentum had shifted and in the 74th, Eden Hazard’s cross was met by Fellaini, who equalized from close range with a powerful header.

Belgium continued to push forward and both Chadli and Lukaku forced Japan keeper Eiji Kawashima into a couple of spectacular saves with powerful headers four minutes from full time.

In stoppage time, Keisuke Honda’s 30-metre free-kick was parried away by Courtois. The keeper then launched the ball to Kevin De Bruyne, who made a beeline through the field before finding Meunier, whose cross was met by Chadli for the winner.

Culled from Presstv

An now the latest news of the 2018 World Cup news, Uruguay Edinson Cavani’s double has ended Portugal and Cristiano Ronaldo’s journey in Russia.

PSG striker Cavani put Uruguay on the score sheet after 7 minutes when he scored with a header. Portugal managed to level the match when central defender Pepe scored with a powerful header before the hour mark.

However, Uruguay went back in front soon after when Cavani scored his second of the match with a curled finish in the 62nd minute, therefore Cristiano Ronaldo follows Lionel Messi to leave the tournament. Uruguay will come up against France in the quarterfinals on Friday at the Nizhny Novgorod Stadium.

Cristiano Ronaldo and Lionel Messi have their their World Cup dreams snuffed out on Saturday as French teenager Kylian Mbappe flew the flag for a new generation in Russia.

Ten goals were scored on a gripping first day of the knockout phase as France progressed to a quarter-final tie against Uruguay but Messi and Ronaldo may have played their last games on football’s biggest stage.

In the first match, in Kazan, France roared back to beat Argentina 4-3, with 19-year-old Mbappe scoring twice in an electrifying display.

Later in Sochi, Ronaldo — who started the World Cup with a hat-trick against Spain — was powerless to prevent Portugal slipping out of the tournament as Edinson Cavani scored twice in a 2-1 win to send the European champions home.

The Paris Saint-Germain striker opened the scoring with an early header and curled a superb first-time shot past Rui Patricio to win the match after a Pepe equalizer.

Cavani, who forms a dangerous front-line pairing alongside Luis Suarez, later limped off, helped by Ronaldo, sparking fears for his World Cup future.

Ronaldo, who will be 37 by the time of the next World Cup, was unable to keep Portugal alive despite incessant pressure from his side in the dying stages of the match.

But Portugal coach Fernando Santos said the Real Madrid forward still had plenty to offer.

“Cristiano still has a lot to give to football and I hope he will stay to help the young players grow and develop,” he said. “We have a team with many young players and of course we all want him there with us.”

Uruguay coach Oscar Tabarez said Cavani had sustained an injury and it was unclear how serious it was.

“As always we will bank on the strength of our team as a collective,” he said. “That is our best chance against any adversary, and we know that France will be very tough indeed.

“But we will try our best and look to impose our way of playing on them, using our strengths,” he added. “We’re here to play all seven matches, right up until the final, and we will see what happens.”

– France pace –

France, the 1998 champions, looked a totally different side from the one that struggled to find their cutting edge in the group stage, pouring forward with pace and purpose to stretch the ageing Argentine defense.

Antoine Griezmann gave France the lead from the penalty spot but the South Americans leveled with a sweet hit from Angel Di Maria and edged ahead shortly after half-time through Gabriel Mercado.

But defender Benjamin Pavard equalized with a thunderous strike to pull France level and once more change the complexion of the game.

That set the scene for Mbappe, who netted two goals in four second-half minutes to become the first teenager to score at least twice in a World Cup match since a 17-year-old Pele in 1958.

Sergio Aguero gave Argentina late hope but they ran out of time and head home after a rollercoaster ride in Russia that ultimately ends in bitter disappointment for the two-time champions.

Man-of-the-match Mbappe(seen below), who is Cavani’s teammate at PSG, brushed off comparisons with Brazil great Pele.

“I’m very happy, and it’s flattering to be compared to a great player like Pele,” he said.

“But he’s in another category. Still, it’s great to join the list of players that have achieved such feats.”

Mbappe was born in 1998, the year Les Bleus secured their first World Cup title under captain Didier Deschamps.

Deschamps, now national manager, praised his team’s character to fight back from 2-1 down.

“We answered the call, we have a lot of character and it was not easy as we were leading, then there was an equalizer, then we were 2-1 behind, but we kept fighting.

“There is an excellent mentality in this group and we did everything to go further. Since I am responsible for everything, particularly when it doesn’t go well, I’m very proud.”

Ragged Argentina

Beaten finalists four years ago, Argentina only reached the last 16 by the skin of their teeth after a shambolic group phase and despite a brave effort against France, the age of their players and an unbalanced squad ultimately caught up with them.

Barcelona’s Messi, 31, has spent the tournament trying to hold the squad together, even apparently bypassing coach Jorge Sampaoli to give coaching instructions in the 2-1 win against Nigeria that saved the South Americans from a humiliating group-stage exit.

He has scored only once and Argentina’s campaign was defined as much by Diego Maradona’s erratic and emotional outbursts.

Astonishingly, neither Messi nor Ronaldo have ever scored a goal in a World Cup knockout match, in a combined 14 games.
Source: Presstv