Croatia convincingly beats UAE, takes big step toward Round of 16

Coach Marijan Budimir’s team had already built a strong lead before halftime thanks to goals from Tino Kusanović and Gabrijel Šivalec. Kusanović opened the scoring in the 30th minute by avoiding an offside trap and finishing past the goalkeeper, followed by Šivalec in the 36th minute, who struck with a precise shot to catch Abdulla off guard.

From the first minute, Croatia dominated possession and created chances. Niko Horvat had a clear opportunity early in the game, but the UAE goalkeeper made a strong save. Six minutes later, Kusanović almost connected with a cross from Pajsar. The Croatian team continued to control the game in the second half, particularly in the final minutes when Pavle Smiljanić hit the post from the edge of the box in the 84th minute, and Raul Kumar was denied by Abdulla from close range two minutes later. Krešimir Radoš sealed the win in the 89th minute with an impressive header from Pajsar’s right-side cross.

At the final whistle, “Igraj moja Hrvatska” echoed through the stadium as the Croatian players celebrated an important victory. The match was witnessed in the VIP area by a delegation from the Croatian Football Federation, including President Marijan Kustić, Vice President Nenad Horvatić, Technical Director for the A and U-21 Teams Stipe Pletikosa, Head Instructor Petar Krpan, and U-21 Coach Ivica Olić.

Croatia’s final group match is against Costa Rica on Sunday at 15:45 CET, broadcast live on Maxsport 2. In the other Group C match, Senegal defeated Costa Rica 1:0.

Copyright by Croatian Football Federation. Quoting text from this article is granted subject to appropriate credit being given to HNS as a source and providing direct link to the original content at hns.family. Re-use of the photographs is not permitted.