Group D: Argentina Vs Croatia
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The second round matches of Group D begins tonight with the Argentina Vs Croatia clash. Argentina will be desperate to get their first win while Croatia will look to hold onto it’s first place in the group.
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Croatia will look to continue their winning form and confirm it’s place into the knock-out stages by grabbing a win. Any way the match goes, it surely promises to be thrilling encounter.
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Head-To-Head:
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This will be the fifth Argentina Vs Croatia meeting, with the South Americans winning twice to Croatia’s one and one of the Argentina Vs Croatia encounters ending in a draw.
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Just one of the previous four meetings between Argentina and Croatia was at a World Cup, with Argentina winning 1-0 in the group stage game in FIFA World Cup 1998, courtesy of Mauricio Pineda’s strike.
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Lionel Messi has scored in each of his two previous appearances against Croatia, including his first ever goal for Argentina.
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Argentina:
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Argentina are targeting their first win of the FIFA World Cup 2018 in Group D in tonight’s Argentina Vs Croatia. Jorge Sampaoli’s side drew 1-1 in their opening game of the tournament against Iceland, with Sergio Aguero’s opener cancelled out by Alfred Finnbogason’s goal.
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#Messi has missed four of the last seven penalties he has taken for Barcelona and Argentina combined. #ARGISL #WorldCup2018 pic.twitter.com/HAkf6P3kEB
— Subin Dennis (@subindennis) June 16, 2018
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Another unexpected event happened on the same night when Lionel Messi missed a penalty, but head coach Jorge Sampaoli says the Barcelona star should not shoulder all of the blame.
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Key Players: Lionel Messi (Barcelona)
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Almost inarguably the greatest player of all-time, Lionel Messi is absolutely the prime man for this Argentina team. The one thing that’s evaded him over his career though, is a FIFA World Cup title. And if Argentina want to do anything in this tournament, then the Barcelona star will have to be on top form including in tonight’s Argentina Vs Croatia game.
It's #ARG vs #CRO tonight! @lukamodric10 on Lionel Messi ahead of #ARGCRO… pic.twitter.com/F8F1zQWLbC
— FIFA World Cup (@FIFAWorldCup) June 21, 2018
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Young Player To Look Out For: Cristian Pavon (Boca Juniors)
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It’s not easy to stand out when you’ve got Messi, Higuaín, Agüero and Dybala in front of you, but that’s exactly what this Boca Juniors youngster has done.
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With Cristian Pavon potentially set to be handed a start against #CRO tonight, @BenMcAleer1 looks at the reasoning for his possible inclusion in Jorge Sampaoli's #ARG XI — https://t.co/wSGYm7XFHQ pic.twitter.com/pMukP9YMtG
— WhoScored.com (@WhoScored) June 21, 2018
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Balance, speed and good technique makes the 22 year-old an excellent option to choose when Sampaoli runs out of ideas. The Argentina boss recently praised Pavón and the understanding he shares with Messi only bodes well for him as well as Argentina.
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Predicted Line-Up:
Croatia:
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Croatia’s opening 2-0 victory over Nigeria.
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Key Players: Luka Modric (Real Madrid)
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Luka Modrić, the midfield general of Real Madrid, is the key man for Croatia at this FIFA World Cup in Russia and he needs to be the same for his national side in tonight’s Argentina Vs Croatia.
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Luka Modric scores the 2,400th goal in World Cup history! pic.twitter.com/S1GiGLysas
— ESPN FC (@ESPNFC) June 16, 2018
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He’s been a master for the Los Blancos ever since his arrival in 2012 and is absolutely the heartbeat of the national side as well. Luka Modrić is among the top three midfielders in the world and along with Ivan Rakitić on his side, could help the Eastern Europeans spring a few surprises.
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Young Player To Look Out For: Andrej Kramaric (1899 Hoffenheim)
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For fans of the Bundesliga, Kramarić might not be considered much of an unknown – but to everyone else, this 26-year-old arrives in Russia with a point to prove and in the top form of his life.
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Match day! 🇭🇷
Good luck, Andrej #Kramaric, in your second match at the @FIFAWorldCup: At 9pm local time, @HNS_CFF will face Lionel Messi and Argentina.
Go get them! #WorldCup pic.twitter.com/Q5bnYCWpAl
— TSG Hoffenheim EN (@tsghoffenheimEN) June 21, 2018
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The striker has fired Hoffenheim into the Champions League places in the 2017-18 season and filled the hole left by Sandro Wagner’s departure to Bayern Munich.
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Predicted Line-Up:
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Match Prediction:
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After the unexpected events happening since the first of the FIFA World Cup 2018, it is really hard to say.
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Although Argentina look to be a stronger side on paper, Croatia’s performance against Argentina was commendable. The match seems to end in a 1-1 draw.
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Keep visiting Arsedevils for news and updates on the FIFA World Cup 2018 Russia.
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