Croatia has booked a place in the quarterfinals of the World Cup thanks to a penalty shootout win over Denmark at the Nizhny Novgorod Stadium in Russia, following a 1-1 draw after extra time.
The second-smallest nation left in the competition squandered a chance to win the match with 116 minutes played, after Kasper Schmeichel kept out Luka Modric’s penalty.
Neither side had conceded a goal from open play heading into this match, but a frenetic start to proceedings saw both teams net inside the opening four minutes for just the second time in a World Cup fixture.
Mathias Jorgensen’s opener was timed at 97 seconds, making it the fastest since Clint Dempsey’s strike against Ghana four years ago, coming via a Jonas Knudsen long throw.
Croatia were level a few minutes later, though, as an attempted clearance in the box struck makeshift midfielder Andreas Christensen clean in the face, gifting Mario Mandzukic the chance to scuff the ball into the box of the net.
Both teams started living up to their reputations of being tough to break down, however, with the first meaningful shot after the restart coming 73 minutes in.
Denmark’s previous four World Cup knockout ties had produced 19 goals at an average of nearly five a game, but neither team truly looked like netting from open play – Pione Sisto’s curler 108 minutes into the match the closest either side came prior to the penalty.
Schmeichel guessed the right way and kept out Modric’s tired penalty.
The Croats will battle host Russia on Saturday at Fisht Stadium, Sochi.
World Cup: Croatia sets up Russia quarterfinals clash
