Croatia head coach Zlatko Dalić expects Ghana to be dangerous on the counter attack when the teams meet in the Group L decider in Philadelphia on Saturday.
The Black Stars have beaten Panama and drawn with England – which puts them in second place behind the Three Lions, one point ahead of Croatia before the final group stage.
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“We have been patient,” Dalić said, pointing out that Ante Budimir’s goal in the 1-0 win over Panama came from an attacking sequence starting on the wing.
“That’s how we’re going to play. Ghana have played both games in a low block. We were not at the level we want and need to be at, but we remain positive. We wanted three points – and we got them – but it was unexpectedly difficult.
Carlos Queiroz thought Ghana should have had a penalty and one more player in the 0-0 draw against England – if the VAR team had done their job.
“Everything is open,” the former Real Madrid and Portugal coach said of the group, before Croatia copied Ghana’s result against Panama.
“Croatia and Panama have fantastic teams. To score points in this World Cup, you will have to pay a high price. Wins and points are terribly expensive. When you get three points or one point, you have to celebrate – because it takes a lot of running, sacrifice, commitment, work, suffering, and emotion over the course of a match.
World Cup 2026: Team news for Croatia vs Ghana
Petar Musa was Croatia’s lone striker against Panama, but was replaced by Budimir at half-time. After returning from injury this month, Manchester City defender Joško Gvardiol played the entire opening game against England (4-2 loss), but was substituted at half-time in game two.
“He broke his leg six months ago and it’s impressive how he’s come back,” Dalić said.
“He’s not in the shape he could have been – we have to wait for him. He has only been in full swing for a month and a half. He needs time. He comes back and gets even better. We’ll see what we can change against Ghana. We stick to the system we have played in.
Petar Sučić will be suspended in a possible round of 16 if the midfielder receives a yellow card.
Ghana goalkeeper Lawrence Ati-Zigi had to sit out game number two with a groin problem. Prince Kwabena Adu – who was subjected to the duel with Ezri Konsa that led to Queiroz’s criticism of the referees – came on as a substitute, but was substituted 28 minutes later.
Midfielder Caleb Yirenkyi and striker Inaki Williams will have to avoid yellow cards to avoid suspension.
Croatia vs Ghana: Predicted line-ups for the 2026 World Cup
Croatia’s starting eleven (4-3-3): Dominik Livaković – Josip Stanišić, Jošip Šutalo, Marin Pongračić, Marco Pašalić – Luka Modrić, Martin Baturina, Mateo Kovačić – Ivan Perišić, Andrej Kramarić, Ante Budimir
Ghana’s starting eleven (4-3-3): Benjamin Asare – Marvin Senaya, Jonas Adjetey, Jerome Opoku, Gideon Mensah – Inaki Williams, Caleb Yirenkyi, Thomas Partey – Kwasi Sibo, Antoine Semenyo, Jordan Ayew
World Cup 2026: Statistics for Croatia vs Ghana
- Luka Modrić played his 200th international match for Croatia against Panama. In the opening match against England, however, the midfielder played the fewest minutes (58) of his 34 starts in the World Cup and European Championships.
- Croatia and France are the only teams to have reached the semi-finals in each of the last two World Cup finals.
- In Croatia’s previous six World Cup appearances, they have either been knocked out in the group stage (3) or reached the semi-finals (3) – including a place in the final in 2018.
- Dalić is the first head coach to lead Croatia in five major international championships: World Cup 2018, Euro 2020, World Cup 2022, Euro 2024, World Cup 2026.
- Among current managers, only Didier Deschamps with France (21) has led more World Cup matches than Dalić’s 16 with Croatia.
- Ghana can win two group games in a World Cup for the second time in history – beating the Czech Republic and the United States in 2006.
- They have not won any of their last five games against European opposition at the World Cup (two draws, three losses).
- Before the two clean sheets at the start of this tournament, Ghana had conceded goals in each of their previous ten World Cup games – since the 1-0 win over Serbia in the group stage in 2010.
- Jordan Ayew was involved in 14 goals in qualifying (7 goals, 7 assists) – the most in a CAF campaign alongside Algeria’s Mohammed Amoura (10 goals, 4 assists).
- Since its World Cup debut in 2006, Ghana has participated in five out of six championships – more than any other African nation during this period.
World Cup 2026: Prediction for Croatia vs. Ghana
Croatia 1-1 Ghana
Ghana are the underdogs, but have looked like the most solid of these teams under the tactically pragmatic Queiroz. A draw appears to be a good value if Croatia delivers a similar performance to Panama – where they only created two shots on goal.
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