England vs Croatia: Can England contain a powerful Croatian attack?

England will face their first real test on Wednesday when they take on Croatia in the Semifinals in Moscow. For Croatia, they have beat several quality teams to get to this point. Who will come out on top and reach the world’s biggest stage, the World Cup final?

England had a relatively simple task at hand in the quarterfinals where they played Sweden. England dominated possession in that match and won 2-0 thanks to headers from Delle Alli and Harry Maguire.

The round of 16 was a tougher task for the English, as they took on a Colombia squad who was without their star player, James Rodriguez. England just came out victorious in that one, winning in penalties.

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Croatia’s journey to the Semifinals has been well earned. Their most impressive feat was in the group stage when they beat a helpless Argentina side 3-0.

The round of 16 saw the Croatians beat Denmark in penalties, arguably their worst performance of this World Cup thus far. Then Sunday, Croatia took on a surprising Russia squad.

It was a game for the ages. The Russians refused to give in, tying the game at two with just minutes remaining in injury time. The match would eventually head to penalties, where Croatia would get the better of the host country, winning 4-3 in PK’s.

The Matchup

The two sides have played each other fives times in the past, with England winning three times, and Croatia winning twice.

Their last clash though was almost a decade ago when they played each other in 2010 World Cup qualifying. England thrashed the Croatians 5-1 in that match.

England

This will be England’s first real test of the World Cup. They played a Colombia squad in the round of 16 who was missing their playmaker in the midfield, James Rodriguez. Then they took on Sweden, who’s top striker Marcus Berg failed to score once in the World Cup.

Croatia is the first very good team that England will face. Their defense really hasn’t been tested, but that will definitely change on Wednesday.

Not to take anything away from Harry Maguire and co. on the back line, but they haven’t had to deal with any serious threats on the attack thus far.

Offensively, England has looked relatively productive, scoring 11 times in five matches. Harry Kane has netted six of those goals, a sure candidate for the golden boot.

One thing The three lions have been known to do in this World Cup is taking their foot off the pedal. Against Colombia, after they scored, they totally backed off and stopped trying.

They looked tired, weak, and relatively non-existent. If they play that type of football against a team like Croatia they will pay for it.

Gareth Southgate must bring on fresh legs if his guys are getting tired. He has enough quality players on the bench who could come in and make an impact.

Croatia

Croatia has dominated every game in the midfield thanks to a world-class playmaker right in the middle, Luka Modric. With Ivan Rakitic and Ivan Perisic alongside him, the Croatians have done a great job of having the majority of the possession in every game they’ve played.

Expect to see a lot of the same from Croatia in this match. I do believe they will still carry more of the possession than England, it may just not be as lopsided as their past fixtures because England is fundamentally a better team than Russia and Denmark were.

One flaw the Croatians have shown is their inability to defend set pieces. It was evident when they gave up the injury-time goal to the Russians off a set piece just outside the 18-yard box.

England has looked very impressive on dead ball opportunities, scoring five of their 11 goals from free kicks or corners. Croatia must tighten it up on the back line against England when it comes to these situations.

Players to watch

For Croatia, their success comes down to how productive Modric and Rakitic are in the center. They must control the match like they have almost every game thus far.

Getting balls wide and involving Ivan Perisic and Ante Rebic on the left and right flanks will be vital. Up front, Mario Mandzukic brings experience and goal-scoring ability to the table.

The big striker will be a threat that England’s defense will have to contain. Andrej Kramaric, who scored one of Croatia’s two goals against Russia, is also a solid player on the attack and can find the net at any given time.

For England, Harry Kane will look to continue his dominance and create havoc amongst the Croatian backline. Jesse Lingard is always a threat as part of their four attacking midfielders.

He brings speed, skill and whippet-like movements through the middle. Kieran Trippier has looked fantastic for England in the World Cup on the right flank.

The Tottenham man has been doing a great job of getting down the wing and whipping balls into the box.

Do or die for Croatian football

For Croatia, this is do or die for their squad. Luke Modric and Ivan Rakitic are 32 and 30 years old respectively, so this is most likely their last World Cup for their country.

Croatia was a dark horse coming into the World Cup and they have absolutely lived up to expectations. It would be the perfect way for Modric and Rakitic to end their World Cup careers; by lifting the trophy.

Is this the time for England?

For England, they have many years ahead of quality football on the international stage. But they want it now. It will be interesting to see how the English fare against their first real test of this World Cup.

One thing is for sure; their entire country will be behind them. This squad is very young and hungry, so it will be exciting if they can bring it home.

Next: England need to drop Raheem Sterling out of starting XI

The winner of Wednesday’s Semifinal will take on the winner of France and Belgium in the historic World Cup final on Sunday in Moscow at Luzhniki stadium, the same location as this Semifinal.