Croatia managed to qualify for the quarter-finals of the World Cup, only after the penalty shootout against Japan. The regular time of the meeting ended with the result 1-1, as it was Japan who appeared more insistent on the green field, throughout the greater part of the challenge.
The Japanese took the lead in the 43rd minute of the match through Maeda, who made good use of the confusion of the moment in the Croatian defense. The first half of the meeting ended with the advantage of the Asians, but in the second Croatia significantly increased the tempo of the game in search of the equalizing goal. The latter would come very quickly, only 10 minutes after the start of the second half. It was Ivan Perisic who made the most of Dejan Lovren's cross, sending the ball into the net with a beautiful header.
Regular time ended in a 1-1 draw, but even the extra 30 minutes failed to produce anything new at Al Janoub Stadium. For this reason, the teams turned to the penalty spot. At this point, the Croatians were spared goalkeeper Livakovic, who spectacularly stopped penalties from Takumi Minamino, Kaoru Mitoma and Yoshida. Croatia triumphed in the end 11-3 from the penalty spot, thus once again reaching the quarter-finals of the World Cup.
Meanwhile, on the other hand, Brazil destroyed South Korea with a score of 4-1, never doubting the qualification. Beyond the goals, the difference was clear on the pitch, as the Brazilians never really struggled to trouble the Korean defence. The first goal would come in the 7th minute with the Real Madrid superstar, Vinícius Júnior. Just 4 minutes later, the referee awarded a penalty in favor of the Brazilians, which was easily converted into a goal by Neymar. The other 2 goals for Brazil were scored by Richarlison and Lucas Paquetá, also in the first half.
In the second, the Brazilians somewhat slowed down the tempo of the game, starting from the rather comfortable result. Korea meanwhile found the consolation goal in the 76th minute, when Paik Seung-ho scored with a spectacular shot. Anyway, that was the end of the Koreans' adventure in Qatar.
