Croatia 2 – 1 Morocco
Great goals from Joško Guardiola and Mislav Oršić helped Croatia beat Morocco 2-1 and finish third for the second time at the World Cup.
Victory also means Croatia captain Luka Modric ends what is likely to be his last World Cup with a bronze medal, although the 37-year-old has yet to put his international career on hold after committing to next summer’s Nations League finals.
“About my future? I don’t know if I will (play) until the Euros in Germany,” he said beIN Sports to the question about Euro 2024.
“We’ll see. I have to go step by step. I enjoy the national team. I feel happy.
“I still think I can play at a high level and I want to continue at least until the Nations League.
“After that, there will be more time to think about the Euro. Now we have to go step by step and continue at least until the League of Nations, and then we’ll see.”
With the victory, Croatia secured their third place in the top three of the World Cup after they finished second after France four years ago, while with the defeat of Morocco they missed the opportunity to become the first African nation to win a medal at the championship.
Croatia took the lead in the seventh minute with an incredible header from Guardiola and ended a good tournament for the impressive 20-year-old centre-back.
But Morocco responded immediately as Achraf Dari nodded in from close range just two minutes later.
However, Croatia regained their lead in the 42nd minute with a wonderful curling winner from Oršić when his first attempt in the penalty area went past Moroccan goalkeeper Yassine Bounou and into the far post.
Morocco equalized late on, but Croatian goalkeeper Dominik Livaković denied Youssef En-Nesyri to secure his second World Cup bronze medal after achieving it in 1998.
How Modrić and Croatia finished high in Qatar
If Modrić, who made his 162nd appearance for his country, is at the end of his international career, then a potential new captain in Guardiola appeared in Qatar.
After a well-taken free kick by Croatia, Lovro Majer passed the ball to Ivan Perišić, who headed it over the goal for the leaping Guardiola and Bounou.
But the lead lasted just one minute and 49 seconds when Majer headed Hakim Ziyech’s free kick into the path of Dario who headed home from close range in the ninth minute.
Three minutes before halftime, Croatia regained its lead when Marko Livaja crossed for Oršić, who hit Bounou first time with his right foot.
Croatia appealed for a penalty in the second half when Guardiola was checked by Sofyan Amrabat, but Qatari official Abdulrahman Al Jassim refused to award it.
En-Nesyri twice came close to equalizing in the final minutes as Livakovic first denied him before scoring in stoppage time as Croatia held on to ensure the European nation won the third-place play-off for an 11th straight tournament.
How the World Cup enhanced Modrić’s legacy
Sky Sports’ Adam Bate:
If this is the end for Luka Modrić and the World Cup, it was some romance. Around the final itself, there will be talk that this relationship is all or nothing – you either win or lose. Modric’s contribution shows that this is not true. We have memories.
Modrić made his international debut in 2006, in the same match where Messi scored his first international goal. Four of his five Champions League wins have come together – or perhaps it should in service – Cristiano Ronaldo. Those oversized icons left little room for others.
But Modric, in the end, earned his place at the head of that next tier of heroes. His achievements in Russia 2018 earned him the World Cup Ballon d’Or and helped him become the only man to win the Ballon d’Or in that decade.
Four years later, his legacy has been enhanced, and the recognition is now unanimous. Modric added another win in the Champions League, while Messi and Ronaldo did not. He has carved out his own space and, as the end approaches, those quality moments are more appreciated.
Passes outside the boot, peripheral vision to pick out others’ runs, that ability to control rhythm and tempo, slow down and speed up plays. It was all here. Modric loved the World Cup. And the World Cup took a liking to him.
Dalić: Modrić is our big boss ‘It’s a trophy for him’
Croatian coach Zlatko Dalić hopes that Modrić will play until 2024, praising his performances in Qatar.
“He’s our captain, he’s our big boss,” he said.
“He played fantastically in this tournament. He is 37 years old, but he played like a 20/25 year old. He is our leader. Everyone follows him.
“I am very happy for Luka Modrić, this trophy is for him. He did a fantastic job. Some people think this is the end, but I think he will stay in Croatia for a long time.
“We did a great job tonight and the whole World Cup. For us, bronze is a gold medal. We played a tough tournament. Morocco did similar to what we did in Russia.
“I am very proud and happy. Maybe no one expected us to do this again. We are a small country, but we have a big dream.”
Regragui: We were tired | ‘Croatia deserved third place’
Morocco coach Walid Regragui said: “We wanted to make our fans happy, but we are still happy, we are among the four best teams in the world.
“We gave everyone a good performance, we never gave up. I congratulate Croatia, they deserve third place. We are a young team that is still learning.
“Of course I’m a little disappointed with this second consecutive defeat, but we did everything we could.
“Physically it was difficult, our players got tired, it was very intense. We wanted to make the fans prouder than they already are, that’s it.
“I think we have shown our strength, we have shown that African football is ready to challenge the best teams in the world with efficiency and play at the highest level.
“Probably only after four years we will realize what we achieved in Qatar, at the next World Cup. The pressure will also be higher, there will be expectations around us. That is natural.
“We achieved a great achievement, but we want to do it again. It won’t be easy, but that’s the goal.
“You become stronger through experience and I hope we learn and grow and build in our children in Africa a soccer DNA that lasts.
“Now we’ve allowed kids to dream, to dream of being footballers and going to the World Cup. That’s priceless. In terms of impact in our country, we’ve set the bar high.
“I am sure that in 15 years an African team will win the World Cup.”
General statistics: Croatia continues its solid record at the World Cup
- Croatia has lost only two out of a total of 14 matches in the last two World Cup tournaments (W6 D6): against France in the 2018 final (2-4) and Argentina in this year’s semi-final (0-3).
- Morocco’s two defeats at the 2022 World Cup came in games where they had the two highest possession figures at the tournament (61% against France and 49% against Croatia). Prior to these two games, Morocco averaged just 31% possession and were unbeaten in five games (D3 D2).
- Croatia drew 0-0 with Morocco at MD1, before beating them in this third-place play-off match – only the third time this century that a team has faced an opponent twice in the same World Cup tournament, and it has not lost a single match since Brazil 2002 (against Turkey) and Belgium 2018 (against England).
- This was the first match at the 2022 World Cup in which both teams scored in the first 10 minutes of play. Indeed, there were only 112 seconds between Croatia opening the scoring and Achraf Dario equalizing for Morocco.