In a quarter-final matchup that almost nobody expected, host nation Russia is taking on Croatia at 2pm Eastern time at Fisht Stadium in Sochi. While our World Cup Betting odds show Croatia as a favorite in this match, one thing this World Cup has taught us is that upsets are the norm, so breaking down this game is no easy task. These teams have met a total of three times in the past, with two goal-less draws in 2008 and a 3-1 Croatia win in a 2015 friendly. Both of these teams got to the quarterfinals thanks to shootout victories in the round of 16.
Russia
It cannot be overstated how much this Russian team has improved over the last year. Coming into the World Cup, they were the lowest-ranked hosts ever at the World Cup, and yet despite that they have racked up the third best goal total at the World Cup, claimed second place in the group stage and have put Spain - one of the tournament's favorites to win it all - to rest. Contributions from players all across the board, from the young and talented Aleksandr Golovin to the old and grizzled Sergei Ignashevich, have helped this team achieve what was thought to be impossible at this tournament. They have not stuck to a single formation, going 4-2-3-1 through the group stage before switching up to 3-4-2-1 against Spain. In that game they employed a shamelessly defensive posture that was designed to force Spain into penalty kicks.
Croatia
While still not as romantic a story as Russia or England in this World Cup, Croatia has still put together a little Cinderella story of its own by topping their group and advancing to the Quarterfinals thanks to a shootout victory versus Denmark. Croatia has been lead by their very talented and experienced Midfielders, namely Real Madrid star Luka Modrić and Barcelona's Ivan Rakitić. Both play a very thorough, two way game where they are both dangerous on the attack and responsible on the defensive side of the ball. Their ability to stifle Leo Messi and the rest of the elite Argentine offense was something to watch in the group stage, while their resilience and determination in waiting out Denmark in the round of 16 to win in a shootout was equally impressive.
Match Overview
The advantage in this game goes to Croatia based on their players and their recent history. This team, much like Belgium, has seen a generation of players with great promise fall short of expectations in prior international tournaments, but now seem to be coming together in solidarity at this World Cup, which may be their last together as a group. So far they have scored more goals in their four games at this Cup tournament than in their 2006 and 2014 efforts combined. Russia, on the other hand, has been a surprise all the way through, dominating weaker teams in the group stage and fending off much-favored Spain in the Round of 16. Each of Russia's wins featured a different hero, and their group plays with as much team cohesion as any other side we have seen so far at the World Cup. Expect a hard fought match in this game, possibly another draw that gets lulled into a shootout. Both teams used that same strategy for their last wins.
