England were up and attacking in the first-half forcing Croatia to defend deep. Kieran Trippier scored off a stunning free-kick, taking England to a 1-0 lead over Croatia. England created multiple opportunities but Harry Kane and Jesse Lingard failed to capitalise in the final third.
Follow the live match updates here:
58 minute: England are pushing hard for the an equaliser but they are cramped for space by the English defenders up-front.
55 minute: Corner for Croatia. Referee awards a free-kick to England after Lovren concedes a foul on Maguire.
54 minute: Yellow card! England’s Kyle Walker gets booked for a challenge.
48 minute: Yellow card!! Croatia’s Mandzukic gets booked for a foul.
Second-half is underway!
Croatia 0-1 England!!
Half-time!!
45+1 minute: Free-kick to Croatia. England defence clear the ball to safety.
1 minute of Stoppage time!
36 minute: MISS!! England’s Lingard picks up Dele Alli’s pass near the box but fails to hit the target.
32 minute: SAVED!! Croatia’s Rebic fires the ball towards goal after an error by Stones, but the former hits it directly into the hands of the goalkeeper.
30 minute: MISS!! Harry Kane misses a golden opportunity as he fails to get past goalkeeper Subasic in a one-on-one situation. That was close.
23 minute: Croatia’s Perisic attempts a shot from distance but hits the ball away from the goal. Croatia are pushing hard but England hold on to the possession.
21 minute: Free-kick to England after a Harry Kane goes down in a challenge.
14 minute: England are up and attacking in the early minutes of the match. Croner for England. Trippier finds Maguire in the middle, who heads the ball wide. Can Croatia make a comeback here?
12 minute: Corner for England. Young whips the ball in but Harry Maguire heads it over the crossbar.
What English dreams are made of! #CROENG 0-1#WorldCup pic.twitter.com/ecsplR4s5d
— FIFA World Cup (@FIFAWorldCup) July 11, 2018
Croatia 0-1 England!!
5 minute: GOAL!!! Kieran Trippier curls the free-kick into the net. What a goal!!! This is his first International goal. Is it coming home?
4 minute: Free-kick to England at a dangerous position. England have been brilliant with their set-pieces. Can they take an early lead here?
England remain unchanged after their quarter-final win over Sweden. Croatia, on the other hand, have made one change, Andrej Kramaric is replaced by Marcelo Brozovic.
Kick-off!
FORMATIONS // #CROENG
#WorldCup pic.twitter.com/uMi7msByS9
— FIFA World Cup (@FIFAWorldCup) July 11, 2018
Lineups
Croatia: Danijel Subasic; Sime Vrsaljko, Dejan Lovren, Domagoj Vida, Ivan Strinic; Marcelo Brozovic; Ante Rebic, Luka Modric, Ivan Rakitic, Ivan Perisic; Mario Mandzukic.
England: Jordan Pickford; Kyle Walker, John Stones, Harry Maguire; Jordan Henderson; Kieran Trippier, Jesse Lingard, Dele Alli, Ashley Young; Raheem Sterling, Harry Kane.
Croatia appear in their first semi-final since 1998, after edging past hosts Russia 4-3 on penalties in the quarter-finals. England, on the other hand, will play their third-ever World Cup semi-finals after a comfortable 2-0 win over Sweden.
Croatia coach Zlatko Dalic would rely on star strikers, Luka Modric and Ivan Rakitic, to come good against in-form Harry Kane and Dele Alli.
Squads
Croatia:
Goalkeepers – Lovre Kalinic, Dominik Livakovic, Danijel Subasic.
Defenders – Duje Caleta-Car, Vedran Corluka, Tin Jedvaj, Dejan Lovren, Josip Pivaric, Ivan Strinic, Domagoj Vida, Sime Vrsaljko.
Midfielders – Milan Badelj, Filip Bradaric, Marcelo Brozovic, Mateo Kovacic, Luka Modric, Ivan Rakitic.
Forwards – Nikola Kalinic, Andrej Kramaric, Mario Mandzukic, Ivan Perisic, Marko Pjaca, Ante Rebic.
England:
Goalkeepers – Jack Butland, Jordan Pickford, Nick Pope.
Defenders – Phil Jones, Gary Cahill, Kyle Walker, Kieran Trippier, Trent Alexander-Arnold, Danny Rose, Ashley Young, John Stones, Harry Maguire.
Midfielders – Eric Dier, Jordan Henderson, Fabian Delph, Ruben Loftus-Cheek, Jesse Lingard, Dele Alli.
Forwards – Harry Kane, Marcus Rashford, Jamie Vardy, Raheem Sterling, Danny Welbeck.
Source: Zee News