Argentina and Croatia win World Cup quarterfinal games on penalties
December 10, 2022
Argentina and Croatia are each two wins away from winning the 2022 FIFA World Cup in Qatar. On Friday, two quarterfinal matches went to penalties, with Croatia defeating Brazil 4-2 after being tied on the pitch at one goal apiece and Agentina beating Netherlands 4-3 after being tied on the pitch at two goals apiece.
In the Croatia/Brazil contest, Neymar put Brazil up 1-0 with a goal in the first minute of extra time in the first half of extra time. (In other words the 16th minute of extra time after the game was deadlocked at zero after regulation). Croatia then responded on a goal by Bruno Petkovic, a striker for Dinamo Zagreb in the 27th minute of extra time.
In the penalties, Croatian goalkeeper Dominik Livakovic of Dinamo Zagreb made a save on the first shot attempt for Brazil by Rodrygo. Croatia scored four goals on penalty kicks and then eliminated Brazil when Marquinhos hit the post.
In the Argentina/Netherlands contest, Argentina went up 2-0 on goals by Nahuel Molina of Atletico Madrid (in the 35th minute) and Lionel Messi of Paris St-Germain (in the 73rd minute on a penalty kick). The Netherlands then tied the game at two with goals in the 83rd and 101st minutes. Argentina won the game on penalties thanks to two great saves by goalkeeper Emiliano Martinez of Aston Villa.
Only once before has Croatia played Argentina at the World Cup. That was four years ago in the Group Stage in Russia, with Croatia winning 3-0. The Croatian goal scorers were Ante Rebic, Luka Modric, and Ivan Rakitic.
November 1, 2023
Which Teams Still Have Work to Do in Order to Reach UEFA Euro 2024
In the summer of 2021, Italy climbed to the summit of European football as they defeated England on penalties at Wembley to win the delayed UEFA Euro 2020 Next summer, the tournament returns as Read MoreAugust 20, 2023
Australia finishes fourth in extremely successful Women's World Cup
The 2023 FIFA Women's World Cup has been an incredible success with a total attendance of 185 million for the first 62 games of the tournament according to John Pye of The Associated Press On Read MoreAugust 17, 2023