Croatia World Cup exit was sealed in a Round of 32 result drowned out by late-game drama and refereeing issues that brought a bit of controversy to the match against Portugal. Head coach Zlatko Dalic decried the important decisions made by the officials, but pointed out that the loss to his side was “self-inflicted. The game took a turn at a crucial moment with Portugal leveling up through a Video Assistant Referee (VAR) review that was followed by a Cristiano Ronaldo penalty.
It was the final minute that really mattered as Goncalo Ramos, who had played on the right in a central role, scored in the 94th minute with a shot to the top corner, taking advantage of gaps in the defence. The minutes of the end of the session brought more controversy. Croatia thought they had a late equaliser through Josko Gvardiol but VAR’s clearance of the ball was decisive as it bounced off Igor Matanovic in the build-up and was offside.
But Norwegian referee Espen Eskas then confirmed the ruling, adding to Croatia’s frustration. In an open criticism of the officiating, Dalic claimed that the decisions were not up to scratch, with the perception being that there were more fouls letting through than in the opposite direction and that the game was not well-managed. But his post-match assessment was more circumspect, conceding that Croatia missed previous scoring chances which might have been averted by other means. Tactically, Croatia could do little in the first half to make assists appear from nowhere, as they were unable to make their attack efficient enough to take control of the game.
Their second-half performance was more intense and structured but was still lacking in some areas when it came to being able to capitalise on some key moments against a side from Portugal who did just that. .
