Thursday morning will see what could be one of the most anticipated World Cup Semi Finals in recent memory as Croatia and England do battle for a place in the 2018 World Cup Final.
The hype surrounding this England outfit has now reached fever pitch and they are now only one game away from their first World Cup Final since 1966, but standing in their way is a Croatian side looking to capitalize on a Golden Generation.
Will the England fairytale continue or will Croatia qualify for their first World Cup Final? We have analysed both sides and our complete 2018 World Cup Semi Final tips can be found below.
Croatia vs England Betting
It is England that will go into this clash as clear favourites and they are $2.25 to win this game in regular time, while they are $1.62 to qualify for the 2018 World Cup Final.
Croatia are $3.50 to win in normal time and $2.20 to qualify and there is $3.10 available for a stalemate at the end of 90 minutes.
How They Got There
Croatia were one of the most impressive sides in the group stages of the 2018 World Cup, but they have struggled through the knockout stages.
They were fairly poor against Denmark and required a shootout to progress, while it was a case of deja-vu against Russia and two back-to-back games of 120 minutes will make this a tough assignment.
England needed penalties to eliminate Colombia in the Round of 16, but they were able to cruise through their Quarter Final with Sweden without ever really being challenged and there is no doubt that they will go into this clash with the physical edge.
Recent Meetings
England have had the edge over Croatia since they first met back in 1996, but it has been a while between fixtures between the two sides.
England beat Croatia 4-1 and 5-1 during 2010 World Cup qualifying, which was during a dark time for the Croatian National side and there is no doubt that they have improved significantly since then.
Analysis
This is set to be a very nervy affair as both these sides know that it could be a very long time before they have another opportunity as good as this one to qualify for the World Cup Final.
There really is not a great deal between these two sides and this is a match that could be decided by individual moments of brilliance.
The physical edge is a massive one for England – they were not physically tested by Sweden and Croatia looked absolutely exhausted at the end of their second extra-time clash in a row.
Set pieces have been huge for England during this tournament and that is another area in which they have an edge, while their defence has been incredibly solid and probably the most underrated aspect of this deep run.
It is fair to say that England have had a fairly easy run to this stage of the tournament – discounting their meaningless final pool game against Belgium – and Croatia do offer a much tougher challenge than Sweden.
When Colombia decided to play football instead of complain to the referee, they were able to outplay England and that was without their best player in the form of James Rodriquez.
The most important player for Croatia and the key to this game could be Luka Modric.
Modric is the most gifted player on either of these sides and he should ensure that Croatia are able to control the midfield battle, which means that England will need to sit back more than they have during this tournament to date.
Whether they can turn that possession into goals is the big issue for Croatia and I am confident that this will be a fairly low-scoring affair.
There is so much pressure on both sides that I don’t think this game will be decided in 90 minutes and – worryingly for England fans – I wouldn’t rule out a penalty shootout.
Back Draw @ $3.10