Croatia vs Nigeria, Worldcup 2018 GROUP STAGE
Overview
Match Preview
Match Details
- Referee Hernan Maidana
- Referee Wilton Pereira Sampaio
- Referee Emerson Augusto De Carvalho
- Referee Marcelo Carvalho Van Gasse
- Referee Daniele Orsato
- Referee Antonio Mateu
- Referee Pau Cebrian
- Referee Artur Soares Dias
- Referee Sandro Ricci
Standings
| # | Team | P | Pts |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Mexico | 3 | 9 |
| 2 | South Africa | 3 | 4 |
| 3 | South Korea | 3 | 3 |
| 4 | Czechia | 3 | 1 |
| 5 | Switzerland | 3 | 7 |
| 6 | Canada | 3 | 4 |
| 7 | Bosnia-Herzegovina | 3 | 4 |
| 8 | Qatar | 3 | 1 |
| 9 | Brazil | 3 | 7 |
| 10 | Morocco | 3 | 7 |
| 11 | Scotland | 3 | 3 |
| 12 | Haiti | 3 | 0 |
| 13 | United States | 3 | 6 |
| 14 | Australia | 3 | 4 |
| 15 | Paraguay | 3 | 4 |
| 16 | Turkey | 3 | 3 |
| 17 | Germany | 3 | 6 |
| 18 | Ivory Coast | 3 | 6 |
| 19 | Ecuador | 3 | 4 |
| 20 | Curaçao | 3 | 1 |
| 21 | Netherlands | 3 | 7 |
| 22 | Japan | 3 | 5 |
| 23 | Sweden | 3 | 4 |
| 24 | Tunisia | 3 | 0 |
| 25 | Belgium | 3 | 5 |
| 26 | Egypt | 3 | 5 |
| 27 | Iran | 3 | 3 |
| 28 | New Zealand | 3 | 1 |
| 29 | Spain | 3 | 7 |
| 30 | Cape Verde Islands | 3 | 3 |
| 31 | Uruguay | 3 | 2 |
| 32 | Saudi Arabia | 3 | 2 |
| 33 | France | 3 | 9 |
| 34 | Norway | 3 | 6 |
| 35 | Senegal | 3 | 3 |
| 36 | Iraq | 3 | 0 |
| 37 | Argentina | 3 | 9 |
| 38 | Austria | 3 | 4 |
| 39 | Algeria | 3 | 4 |
| 40 | Jordan | 3 | 0 |
| 41 | Colombia | 3 | 7 |
| 42 | Portugal | 3 | 5 |
| 43 | Congo DR | 3 | 4 |
| 44 | Uzbekistan | 3 | 0 |
| 45 | England | 3 | 7 |
| 46 | Croatia | 3 | 6 |
| 47 | Ghana | 3 | 4 |
| 48 | Panama | 3 | 0 |
Head-to-Head
Last 5 meetings
Recent Form
Key Stats
0%
Both Teams to Score
H2H (1 games)
H2H (1 games)
0%
Over 2.5 Goals
H2H history
H2H history
25%
Clean Sheets
Croatia this season
Croatia this season
Goal Timing (This Season)
Croatia
0-15
–/1
16-30
–/–
31-45
3/1
46-60
2/1
61-75
–/2
76+
1/2
■ Scored ■ Conceded
Events
Match Events
- 0' Temperatures are rising at as Croatia face off against Nigeria in what promises to be a fascinating contest.
- 5' Ivan Perisic needs to be pretty careful with his discipline considering 0 Red cards this season.
- 10' While there is no rush on the pitch, let’s have a look at some stats. Oghenekaro Etebo made 380 appearances and scored 5 goals. He is very likely to score a goal today.
- 15' Kelechi Iheanacho is putting in a real shift tonight. He has covered more ground than anyone else for Nigeria so far.
- 20' Nigeria international Alex Iwobi has been a key figure this campaign — 0 goals and 0 assists in the Array this season.
- 25' A quiet spell here at . Nigeria seem content sitting deep and soaking up pressure.
- 30' Croatia receives a Yellow card for a hard tackle on 30.
- 32' What a moment for Oghenekaro Etebo! That strike on 32 puts his side firmly in control.
- 37' The home supporters are growing impatient. Croatia must find a spark to ignite this game.
- 42' It looks like no one’s ball. Croatia is used to counterattacking playing. None of the sides are ready to take the lead.
- 47' Croatia started playing very sharply right from the kick off. However, it slowed down the tempo rapidly by 47.
- 52' Abdullahi Shehu, a Nigeria , has 0 bookings this season and will need to keep his discipline tonight.
- 57' The travelling Nigeria supporters hardly appreciate their team being pressed down to the backline.
- 60' The Croatia bench stirs into life. Andrej Kramaric is withdrawn and Marcelo Brozovic gets his opportunity.
- 62' The supporters are chanting for Ahmed Musa. He replaces Alex Iwobi on 62 minute.
- 67' It’s high time Zlatko Dalić made some changes to put the his team’s game back to action.
- 70' The referee does not hesitate — a Yellow card for William Troost-Ekong on 70 minutes.
- 71' A goal from the Croatia international Luka Modric! He fires home on 71 to make it 1-1!
- 72' The Nigeria manager makes a substitution. Odion Ighalo departs to be replaced by Kelechi Iheanacho.
- 77' Domagoj Vida has been disciplined this evening — perhaps mindful of those 0 cards already picked up this season.
- 78' Ante Rebic makes way for Mateo Kovacic at the 78 minute mark. A tactical switch from Croatia.
- 83' The energy levels are beginning to show. Gernot Rohr might look to freshen things up shortly.
- 86' Croatia ring the changes. Mario Mandzukic has done his job and it is now time for Marko Pjaca to step up.
- 88' Another change for Nigeria made on 88 minute. John Obi Mikel leaves to be changed by Simeon Nwankwo.
- 89' That is a Yellow card for Croatia. Marcelo Brozovic will be fuming at that decision.
- Both sets of fans can go home satisfied — a 2-0 draw is a fair result on the day.
Lineups
Croatia Lineups
Starting XI
- 6
- 23
- 9
-
18
Ante Rebic ↓ Mateo Kovacic 78'
- 7
- 10
-
17
Mario Mandzukic ↓ Marko Pjaca 86'
- 3
- 2
- 4
- 21
Bench
-
8
Mateo Kovacic ↑ 78'
- 15
- 13
- 16
- 14
-
11
Marcelo Brozovic ↑ 60'
-
20
Marko Pjaca ↑ 86'
- 19
- 22
- 1
- 12
- 5
Coach
Zlatko Dalić
Nigeria Lineups
Starting XI
- 23
- 2
- 5
- 6
- 12
- 10
- 11
-
18
Alex Iwobi ↓ Ahmed Musa 62'
- 4
- 8
- 9
Bench
- 22
- 17
- 3
- 16
- 15
-
7
Ahmed Musa ↑ 62'
- 21
- 19
-
13
Simeon Nwankwo ↑ 88'
-
14
Kelechi Iheanacho ↑ 72'
- 20
- 1
Coach
Gernot Rohr
H2H
H2H Top Scorers
| Player | Goals |
|---|---|
| Luka Modric | 1 |
| Oghenekaro Etebo | 1 |
| Luka Modric | 1 |
| Oghenekaro Etebo | 1 |
Head to Head
Croatia Form
Predictions
Prediction accuracy
3 / 4
1.57
Croatia xG
Expected Goals
Dixon-Coles · Bivariate Poisson · Neg. Binomial · Elo
0.67
Nigeria xG
I would bet for:
Under 2.5 goals 62% + Under — clean sheet likely 60%
Match Result
✓ CorrectActual: Croatia win
Both Teams to Score
✓ Correct
Avg goals/match: 2.24
Actual: No — clean sheet
Over / Under Goals
✓ O/U 2.5| Line | Over | Under | |
|---|---|---|---|
| ± 0.5 | 87% |
|
13% |
| ± 1.5 | 65% |
|
35% |
| ± 2.5 | 38% |
|
62% |
| ± 3.5 | 19% |
|
81% |
| ± 4.5 | 8% |
|
92% |
Double Chance
Croatia or Draw
82%
Draw or Nigeria
44%
Croatia or Nigeria
73%
Half-Time Result
✗ WrongActual: Croatia win at HT
Correct Score
✓ In top 12
1 – 0
15.8%
0 – 0
12.8%
2 – 0
Actual
1 – 1
12%
2 – 1
8.5%
3 – 0
6.5%
0 – 1
6.1%
3 – 1
4.6%
1 – 2
3.6%
2 – 2
2.9%
4 – 0
2.6%
0 – 2
2.3%
Asian Handicap — Croatia
| Handicap | Croatia covers | Push | Nigeria covers |
|---|---|---|---|
| -2.5 | 13% | — | 87% |
| -2 | 13% | 18% | 69% |
| -1.5 | 31% | — | 69% |
| -1 | 31% | 26% | 43% |
| -0.5 | 57% | — | 43% |
| +0.5 | 86% | — | 14% |
| +1 | 86% | 10% | 4% |
| +1.5 | 96% | — | 4% |
| +2 | 96% | 3% | 1% |
| +2.5 | 99% | — | 1% |
Clean Sheet
Croatia keeps clean sheet
52%
✓
Nigeria keeps clean sheet
22%
✓
Predictions are statistical estimates based on season form, H2H history, and a Poisson model. Not financial advice.