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Neymar of Brazil and Korea Republic's Son Heung-min
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Matchday 16 Live Blog: Brazil, Croatia advance to quarters
Join us for Matchday 16 as we bring you the key moments and highlights from today's FIFA World Cup fixtures.
Neymar of Brazil and Korea Republic's Son Heung-min
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By SBS Sport
Source: SBS
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Perisic scores
55' - We're back level!
Dejan Lovren whips in a perfect cross and Ivan Perisic arrows his header into the far corner.
It's 1-1, and you get the sense more goals could be on the way!
Dejan Lovren whips in a perfect cross and Ivan Perisic arrows his header into the far corner.
It's 1-1, and you get the sense more goals could be on the way!
Second half starts
46' - Japan begin second half
The Samurai Blue restart proceedings looking to preserve their advantage.
The Samurai Blue restart proceedings looking to preserve their advantage.
Half-time whistle blows
HT - The referee calls an end to the first half
The players head for the tunnel after an entertaining 45 minutes in Al Janoub.
The players head for the tunnel after an entertaining 45 minutes in Al Janoub.
Maeda scores
43' - Maeda breaks the deadlock!
Ritsu Doan sends in a cross from the short corner and Daizen Maeda reacts quickest following Maya Yoshida's header to give Japan a deserved lead.
Ritsu Doan sends in a cross from the short corner and Daizen Maeda reacts quickest following Maya Yoshida's header to give Japan a deserved lead.
First half under way
1' - Kick-off
We are underway with the start of the first half at Al Janoub Stadium.
We are underway with the start of the first half at Al Janoub Stadium.
Croatia Stats
· Based on Gracenote's World Cup forecast, Croatia (58%) are the favourites for this game (42% chance for Japan).
· Croatia have reached the knockout stage of the World Cup for the third time, after 1998 (third place) and 2018 (runners-up). They did not make it out of the group stage in 2002, 2006 and 2014.
· World Cup holders France also qualified for the round of last 16 this tournament. Not since 2006 (Brazil and Germany) had both finalists from the previous tournament progressed to the round of last 16. Brazil and Germany both reached the quarter-finals in 2006.
· Croatia remained unbeaten in the group stage: 0-0 against Morocco, 4-1 win against Canada and 0-0 against Belgium. Only (West) Germany (3 in 1978) and Poland (3 in 1982) recorded more than two 0-0 results at a single World Cup.
· Croatia lost only one of their last 19 matches (W12-D6-L1), a 3-0 Nations League defeat versus Austria in Osijek on 3 June.
· Croatia were eliminated in the round of last 16 at EURO 2020. They were beaten 5-3 after extra time by Spain in Copenhagen on 28 June 2021. The Croatians were 3-1 down after 84 minutes, but goals by Mislav Oršic (85') and Mario Pašalic (90+2') got them to extra time.
· Croatia have won both their penalty shootouts at the World Cup: in 2018 against Denmark (3-2, round of last 16) and hosts Russia (4-3, quarter-finals). Danijel Subašic made three saves against Denmark and one against Russia (also one wide).
· Only Luka Modric and Ivan Rakitic converted a penalty in both shootouts. Milan Badelj and Josip Pivaric missed versus Denmark, Mateo Kovacic against Russia.
· Ivan Perišic (32) is one short of moving joint-second alongside Mario Mandzukic (33) in Croatia's all-time leading goalscorers, behind only Davor Šuker (45). Perisic failed to score in his last nine appearances for Croatia.
· Perišic is joint-second alongside Mario Mandzukic (both 5) in Croatia's leading World Cup goalscorers, only one behind Davor Šuker (6). In terms of World Cup and EUROs goals combined, Perišic is Croatia's joint-leading goalscorer alongside Šuker (both 9).
· Šuker (4), Mandzukic (3) and Perišic (2) are the players to have scored multiple World Cup knockout stage goals for Croatia. Perišic scored his knockout stage goals against England (semi-finals) and France (final) in 2018.
· Andrej Kramaric and Domagoj Vida (both versus Russia in the 2018 quarter-finals) are the other players in Croatia's squad to have netted a World Cup knockout stage goal.
· Dejan Lovren and Luka Modric will be suspended if booked.
Courtesy of Gracenote
· Croatia have reached the knockout stage of the World Cup for the third time, after 1998 (third place) and 2018 (runners-up). They did not make it out of the group stage in 2002, 2006 and 2014.
· World Cup holders France also qualified for the round of last 16 this tournament. Not since 2006 (Brazil and Germany) had both finalists from the previous tournament progressed to the round of last 16. Brazil and Germany both reached the quarter-finals in 2006.
· Croatia remained unbeaten in the group stage: 0-0 against Morocco, 4-1 win against Canada and 0-0 against Belgium. Only (West) Germany (3 in 1978) and Poland (3 in 1982) recorded more than two 0-0 results at a single World Cup.
· Croatia lost only one of their last 19 matches (W12-D6-L1), a 3-0 Nations League defeat versus Austria in Osijek on 3 June.
· Croatia were eliminated in the round of last 16 at EURO 2020. They were beaten 5-3 after extra time by Spain in Copenhagen on 28 June 2021. The Croatians were 3-1 down after 84 minutes, but goals by Mislav Oršic (85') and Mario Pašalic (90+2') got them to extra time.
· Croatia have won both their penalty shootouts at the World Cup: in 2018 against Denmark (3-2, round of last 16) and hosts Russia (4-3, quarter-finals). Danijel Subašic made three saves against Denmark and one against Russia (also one wide).
· Only Luka Modric and Ivan Rakitic converted a penalty in both shootouts. Milan Badelj and Josip Pivaric missed versus Denmark, Mateo Kovacic against Russia.
· Ivan Perišic (32) is one short of moving joint-second alongside Mario Mandzukic (33) in Croatia's all-time leading goalscorers, behind only Davor Šuker (45). Perisic failed to score in his last nine appearances for Croatia.
· Perišic is joint-second alongside Mario Mandzukic (both 5) in Croatia's leading World Cup goalscorers, only one behind Davor Šuker (6). In terms of World Cup and EUROs goals combined, Perišic is Croatia's joint-leading goalscorer alongside Šuker (both 9).
· Šuker (4), Mandzukic (3) and Perišic (2) are the players to have scored multiple World Cup knockout stage goals for Croatia. Perišic scored his knockout stage goals against England (semi-finals) and France (final) in 2018.
· Andrej Kramaric and Domagoj Vida (both versus Russia in the 2018 quarter-finals) are the other players in Croatia's squad to have netted a World Cup knockout stage goal.
· Dejan Lovren and Luka Modric will be suspended if booked.
Courtesy of Gracenote
Japan Stats
· Japan have reached the knockout stage of the World Cup for the fourth time in seven appearances. They can reach the quarter-finals for the first time.
· Japan can become the third AFC nation to get past the round of last 16 at the World Cup, after Korea DPR in 1966 (quarter-finals) and Republic Korea in 2002 (fourth place).
· Japan either finished bottom of their group (1998, 2006, 2014) or were eliminated in the round of last 16 (2002, 2010, 2018) in their previous six World Cup appearances. Their knockout phase exits were against Türkiye (1-0 in 2002, when they were co-hosts), Paraguay (on penalties in 2010) and Belgium (3-2 in 2018).
· Japan were 2-0 up against Belgium thanks to goals by Genki Haraguchi (48') and Takashi Inui (52'), but got kicked out from the tournament following the goals by Jan Vertonghen (69'), Marouane Fellaini (74') and Nacer Chadli (90+4').
· Japan won their group thanks to 2-1 victories over Germany and Spain, despite only having 26% and 18% ball possession respectively in those games. Japan lost 1-0 against Costa Rica when they had the most possession (57%).
· Japan (2) can equal the record for most wins at a single World Cup from a losing position at any moment, set by (West) Germany in 1970 and matched by Netherlands in 2014.
· Japan can win successive World Cup matches for the second time, after group stage victories against Russia (1-0) and Tunisia (2-1) on home soil in 2002.
· Japan have been involved in one penalty shootout at the World Cup: they lost 5-3 on penalties (0-0 score after 120 minutes) against Paraguay in the round of last 16 at the 2010 World Cup in South Africa. Japan's Yuichi Komano (hit the bar) was the only player to miss his spot kick.
· Ko Itakura is suspended for this match. Wataru Endo, Shogo Taniguchi, Miki Yamane and Maya Yoshida will be suspended if booked.
Courtesy of Gracenote
· Japan can become the third AFC nation to get past the round of last 16 at the World Cup, after Korea DPR in 1966 (quarter-finals) and Republic Korea in 2002 (fourth place).
· Japan either finished bottom of their group (1998, 2006, 2014) or were eliminated in the round of last 16 (2002, 2010, 2018) in their previous six World Cup appearances. Their knockout phase exits were against Türkiye (1-0 in 2002, when they were co-hosts), Paraguay (on penalties in 2010) and Belgium (3-2 in 2018).
· Japan were 2-0 up against Belgium thanks to goals by Genki Haraguchi (48') and Takashi Inui (52'), but got kicked out from the tournament following the goals by Jan Vertonghen (69'), Marouane Fellaini (74') and Nacer Chadli (90+4').
· Japan won their group thanks to 2-1 victories over Germany and Spain, despite only having 26% and 18% ball possession respectively in those games. Japan lost 1-0 against Costa Rica when they had the most possession (57%).
· Japan (2) can equal the record for most wins at a single World Cup from a losing position at any moment, set by (West) Germany in 1970 and matched by Netherlands in 2014.
· Japan can win successive World Cup matches for the second time, after group stage victories against Russia (1-0) and Tunisia (2-1) on home soil in 2002.
· Japan have been involved in one penalty shootout at the World Cup: they lost 5-3 on penalties (0-0 score after 120 minutes) against Paraguay in the round of last 16 at the 2010 World Cup in South Africa. Japan's Yuichi Komano (hit the bar) was the only player to miss his spot kick.
· Ko Itakura is suspended for this match. Wataru Endo, Shogo Taniguchi, Miki Yamane and Maya Yoshida will be suspended if booked.
Courtesy of Gracenote
Head-to-Head: Japan v Croatia
· Japan and Croatia have met three times. Both nations won once and there was one draw.
· The last two matches between these two nations took place at the World Cup, both times in the group stage. Croatia beat Japan 1-0 in Nantes in 1998 courtesy of a goal by Davor Šuker (77') and they drew 0-0 in Nuremberg in 2006. Darijo Srna (22') had a penalty saved by Yoshikatsu Kawaguchi in 2006.
· Japan's win over Croatia was a 4-3 home victory in Tokyo at the 1997 Kirin Cup. Six of the seven goals were netted in the second half, including four goals in the final 15 minutes (one by Japan, three by Croatia).
· Japan defeated Germany (2-1) and Spain (2-1) in the group stage of the 2022 World Cup, after they had won only two of their previous 10 World Cup matches against UEFA opposition (W2-D3-L, including a draw and loss versus Croatia).
· There have been nine knockout stage matches between AFC and UEFA nations at the World Cup. The European nations progressed on seven occasions. The exceptions came in 2002, when co-hosts Republic Korea beat Italy on the golden goal rule 2-1 in the round of last 16 before they eliminated Spain in a penalty shootout in the quarter-finals.
· Japan lost both World Cup knockout stage matches against European nations: 1-0 against Türkiye on home soil in 2002 (round of last 16) and 3-2 against Belgium in Rostov-na-Donu in 2018 (round of last 16).
· Croatia have a W11-D5-L3 record (matches decided on penalties are classed as a draw) against nations from the Asian Football Confederation. One of those three defeats was their 4-3 loss to Japan at the 1997 Kirin Cup. Their other two defeats were 2-0 friendly losses against Republic of Korea, in 2001 and 2006.
· Croatia are unbeaten in their last 10 fixtures against AFC nations (W7-D3-L0, a friendly match against China PR that was decided by a penalty shootout is classed as a draw).
· Wataru Endo/Hiroki Ito and Borna Sosa (VfB Stuttgart), Daichi Kamada and Kristijan Jakic (Eintracht Frankfurt), and Daizen Maeda and Josip Juranovic (Celtic) are club teammates who could be in opposition when Japan face Croatia.
· Goalkeepers Shuichi Gonda (Japan) and Dominik Livakovic (Croatia) have each made 37 senior appearances for their country. They both faced five penalties (including shootouts) in those 37 matches and did not save any of them.
Courtesy of Gracenote
· The last two matches between these two nations took place at the World Cup, both times in the group stage. Croatia beat Japan 1-0 in Nantes in 1998 courtesy of a goal by Davor Šuker (77') and they drew 0-0 in Nuremberg in 2006. Darijo Srna (22') had a penalty saved by Yoshikatsu Kawaguchi in 2006.
· Japan's win over Croatia was a 4-3 home victory in Tokyo at the 1997 Kirin Cup. Six of the seven goals were netted in the second half, including four goals in the final 15 minutes (one by Japan, three by Croatia).
· Japan defeated Germany (2-1) and Spain (2-1) in the group stage of the 2022 World Cup, after they had won only two of their previous 10 World Cup matches against UEFA opposition (W2-D3-L, including a draw and loss versus Croatia).
· There have been nine knockout stage matches between AFC and UEFA nations at the World Cup. The European nations progressed on seven occasions. The exceptions came in 2002, when co-hosts Republic Korea beat Italy on the golden goal rule 2-1 in the round of last 16 before they eliminated Spain in a penalty shootout in the quarter-finals.
· Japan lost both World Cup knockout stage matches against European nations: 1-0 against Türkiye on home soil in 2002 (round of last 16) and 3-2 against Belgium in Rostov-na-Donu in 2018 (round of last 16).
· Croatia have a W11-D5-L3 record (matches decided on penalties are classed as a draw) against nations from the Asian Football Confederation. One of those three defeats was their 4-3 loss to Japan at the 1997 Kirin Cup. Their other two defeats were 2-0 friendly losses against Republic of Korea, in 2001 and 2006.
· Croatia are unbeaten in their last 10 fixtures against AFC nations (W7-D3-L0, a friendly match against China PR that was decided by a penalty shootout is classed as a draw).
· Wataru Endo/Hiroki Ito and Borna Sosa (VfB Stuttgart), Daichi Kamada and Kristijan Jakic (Eintracht Frankfurt), and Daizen Maeda and Josip Juranovic (Celtic) are club teammates who could be in opposition when Japan face Croatia.
· Goalkeepers Shuichi Gonda (Japan) and Dominik Livakovic (Croatia) have each made 37 senior appearances for their country. They both faced five penalties (including shootouts) in those 37 matches and did not save any of them.
Courtesy of Gracenote
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