Croatia Edge Past Ghana to Secure Second Place in Group, Both Teams Progress to Knockout Stage
Croatia has secured a spot in the 2026 FIFA World Cup Round of 32 after defeating Ghana 2-1, extending their unbeaten run against African teams to five games.
The match in Philadelphia saw a cautious start, with neither side creating clear chances in the opening 15 minutes. Nikola Vlasic's long-range effort clipped the post, while Marin Pongracic headed over from a Luka Modric free-kick.
The game gained momentum when Mateo Kovacic set up Petar Sucic to score with a superb long-range strike. Ghana struggled to create scoring opportunities, but Antoine Semenyo came close with an angled strike that went just wide.
After the restart, Abdul Fatawu, who had been brought on by Carlos Queiroz, almost made an immediate impact with a speculative strike that flew over the bar. As the match progressed, developments in another game affected the standings, with Croatia initially slipping to second place after England took the lead against Panama.
Ghana briefly levelled the score through Derrick Luckassen's clinical finish from a free-kick, but Croatia re-established their lead when Vlasic met Modric's corner with a downward header. This goal proved decisive, securing a 2-1 win for Croatia and setting up a meeting with the second-placed team in Group K.
Ghana, meanwhile, will face the winners of Group K in the next round.
The match in Philadelphia saw a cautious start, with neither side creating clear chances in the opening 15 minutes. Nikola Vlasic's long-range effort clipped the post, while Marin Pongracic headed over from a Luka Modric free-kick.
The game gained momentum when Mateo Kovacic set up Petar Sucic to score with a superb long-range strike. Ghana struggled to create scoring opportunities, but Antoine Semenyo came close with an angled strike that went just wide.
After the restart, Abdul Fatawu, who had been brought on by Carlos Queiroz, almost made an immediate impact with a speculative strike that flew over the bar. As the match progressed, developments in another game affected the standings, with Croatia initially slipping to second place after England took the lead against Panama.
Ghana briefly levelled the score through Derrick Luckassen's clinical finish from a free-kick, but Croatia re-established their lead when Vlasic met Modric's corner with a downward header. This goal proved decisive, securing a 2-1 win for Croatia and setting up a meeting with the second-placed team in Group K.
Ghana, meanwhile, will face the winners of Group K in the next round.
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