Croatia will face Russia in the World Cup quarter-finals after defeating Denmark in a penalty shootout following a one-all draw at the end of regulation and extra-time.
The early minutes were full of action, as Denmark took the lead in the opening minute, exactly 58 seconds into the match. However, that lasted mere moments, as Croatia attacked in reply, and a clearance by Denmark hit a teammate’s head, landing at the feet of Mario Mandzukic, who shot truly from six yards.
» Re-live the game and thrilling penalty shootout with our Croatia vs Denmark live blog and highlights
That would ultimately be the extent of the real action as neither team took to the game with any real confidence, and aside from a few limited chances, the match finished at full-time fairly even.
While the chances came here and there, on the whole, neither team truly threatened to the extent that you anticipated either creating any further scoreboard activity.
The second half was an utter disappointment, as both teams played slow and indirect football, seemingly content to ensure they did not lose, rather than wanting to win. As the game drew ever closer to extra time, you felt that the regret of such action would live long with whomever lost out on such a gamble.
Extra-time also failed to live up to much expectation of chances and excitement, though for the most part, Denmark probably had the better of the chances, particularly late in the second period.
The biggest talking point would have been the penalty awarded to Croatia late in extra-time, when defender Mathias Jorgensen brought down Ivan Perisic in a one-on-one with Kasper Schmeichel. Jorgensen was only shown a yellow card as Luka Madric stepped up to convert. Alas for Croatia, his effort was saved.
On the back of that miss, Croatia were the more frenetic of the teams leading up to the penalties, in a seeming attempt to right the wrong of missing such an important penalty.
The shootout was easily more memorable than the game itself, as players from both sides missed the opening shots, Danijel Subasic doing well to save first up, and Schmeichel showing that his previous save in open play was no fluke.
However, with the score at two-all, the unfortunate man to let slip catastrophically would be Danish striker Nikolai Jorgensen, leaving Ivan Rakitic as the man with the job of sending Croatia through.
Rakitic made no mistake.
Ultimately, the Croatians were mentally stronger in the shootout, neither side converting with any real ease, and Croatia finishing 3-2 winners on penalties to set up a date with Russia.
Final score
Croatia: 1 (3)
Denmark: 1 (2)
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