The first place in the final of the FIFA World Cup 2022 will be filled on Tuesday night when the beaten finalists of four years ago, Croatia, will look to get back to the big dance when they go up against Argentina.
Argentina were the losing finalists in Brazil in 2014 so both these teams know how to navigate a semi-final and we saw in their quarter finals that they both know how to come through tight encounters so this should be very keenly fought.
Where to watch
The match will take place on the ITV 1 channel with the build-up to the semi-final beginning at 6.15pm and kick off coming along at 7pm.
Argentina
I think it is fair to say that Argentina have managed their way through to this semi-final but at the same time I think we can also say that they have improved with each match as they are finding their best combinations and building their way into the competition. If that improvement continues then they are going to be hard to beat here because there was some really good stuff from them in that epic quarter final with the Dutch.
The fact that they came through that encounter with the Netherlands will bode well for the Copa America champions because they let their foot off the gas when they went 2-0 up and stopped playing and almost paid the price. That will act as a reminder that you have to play until the final whistle in this game and if they get in front in the contest you would imagine they will manage the situation a lot better than they did on Friday.
Croatia
After losing out in the final four years ago, Croatia will be determined to get back for another shot at world glory. They have kind of been written off as an aging side without much of a threat throughout the tournament but they have shown when they need to find something they have it in their locker. What they do have is an extremely experienced team who know how to control big football matches. Those experienced players know how to handle pressure situations too.
If there is a concern over the Croatians heading into this match it might well be what they have left in the tank. They have had to go to penalties in both knockout matches in this tournament and while adrenalin will kick in and get them so far, the longer this one goes, especially if it goes beyond 90 minutes, the more there could be a concern. Where there is no concern is between the sticks and defensively where Croatia look strong.
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Team News
Argentina are going to be without the suspended pair of Marcos Acuna and Gonzalo Montiel who picked up a second booking in the tournament against the Netherlands. Angel di Maria and Rodrigo de Paul are expected to play a full part.
Croatia were waiting on the health of Borna Sosa and Mislav Orsic who were ill since the quarter final but they have recovered sufficiently so Zlatko Dalic has a full squad to pick from for this second semi-final in succession.
Betting
I’m on both of these sides to win the tournament having backed them both before a ball was kicked so one of them will be playing for me in the final and I’m happy to leave it be and see who it is rather than try and pick a winner of a match which naturally looks like it is going to be tight anyway. I wouldn’t be completely surprised if we don’t get a winner inside the 90 minutes here but as I say I’m not massively bothered who wins it.
I will have one bet on the match though and that comes in the form of a player bet where the price on Ivan Perisic to have a shot on target just looks way too big to me at 6/4. He scored the Croatia goal in the match against Japan and generally gets forward well from the left attacking position, where in this match he’ll be going up against a right-back who is more of an attacking option than a defending one. Perisic can go outside or cut inside and he’s dynamite in the air if Juranovic gets forward the other side and puts a decent ball in. 6/4 on just one shot on target is way too big for an attack of the quality of Perisic.
Tips
Back I.Perisic – Over 0.5 shots on target for a 3/10 stake at 2.50 with Betfair
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