This article is from the source 'guardian' and was first published or seen on . It last changed over 40 days ago and won't be checked again for changes.

You can find the current article at its original source at https://www.theguardian.com/football/2018/jul/11/england-croatia-world-cup-semi-final-match-report

The article has changed 9 times. There is an RSS feed of changes available.

Version 3 Version 4
England’s World Cup dream dashed as Croatia win semi-final in extra time England’s World Cup dream dashed as Croatia win semi-final in extra time
(35 minutes later)
It was like watching a beautiful painting being ripped up in front of your eyes. England’s dream of making it to their first World Cup final for more than half a century was over and in those desolate moments after the final whistle, as the losing players wandered aimlessly around the pitch, almost zombie-like in their trance, it was impossible not to wonder whether there will be a lifetime of regret. It was like watching a beautiful painting being ripped up in front of your eyes. England’s dream of making it to their first World Cup final for more than half a century was over and in the desperate moments after the final whistle, as the losing players wandered aimlessly around the pitch, almost zombie-like in their desolation, it was impossible not to wonder whether that will be a lifetime regret.
Those players will look back eventually on a tournament that has helped to shift England’s reputation for leaden football and tournament neurosis. All the same, it might some take time to get over the ordeal of surrendering an early lead to see everything unravel in the second half and, finally, extra time. England had fallen short and, at this stage of the competition, the disappointment will be tremendous when the World Cup had opened up with so many possibilities. Those players will look back eventually on a tournament that has shifted England’s reputation for leaden football and tournament neuroticism. All the same, it might take some time to shake off the ordeal of losing this semi-final, the knowledge that the World Cup may never open up so obligingly again and the additional trauma from the fact that, for a long while, Gareth Southgate’s team had led us to believe they could do it. They really did.
Instead, it will be Croatia who return to the Luzhniki Stadium on Sunday to face France in the final and, on this evidence, they might yet have the competitive courage to complete their own dreams. The decisive moment here came in the 109th minute from a striker, Mario Mandzukic, who was carrying an injury and that in itself summed up the immense personality of this team. England will go into a third-versus-fourth sideshow against Belgium the previous day and, just like 1990, they would desperately wish they were not there. Instead, it will be Croatia who return to the Luzhniki Stadium on Sunday to face France and, in the midst of the England inquest, it would be hugely unfair on Zlatko Dalic’s team not to recognise the competitive courage that helped them recover from a goal down. The decisive moment came in the 109th minute from a striker, Mario Mandzukic, with a badly damaged knee and that itself summed up this team. They have won all three of their knockout games in extra time and, providing they are not on the point of exhaustion, it is still plausible the World Cup will go to a country with a population of only 4m.
At the very least, Gareth Southgate and his players have helped to redefine the way the England team is perceived around the world. New heroes have emerged, with a new respect and a new outlook. To see the England fans serenading the team, decorating this vast stadium with their St George’s flags and holding the players in such esteem, made it feel a trick of the imagination that the same team was straying dangerously close to a full‑on mutiny not even a year ago. Moscow 2018 certainly felt a long way from Malta, 2017, with its mass walkout and protest songs and theme of unpleasantness. Was that really only 10 months ago? For England, it is the third-versus-fourth sideshow against Belgium on Saturday and, much like Bobby Robson’s beaten semi-finalists of 1990, they will desperately wish they were not there. The honour of football immortality will go to another team. Moscow, 2018, can be filed with Turin, 1990, and their grief was epitomised by Kieran Trippier’s tears as he was helped off in the final exchanges. Trippier had opened the scoring for England with a peach of a free-kick but his injury came after Mandzukic’s winner and the emotion poured out of him. He knew it was over.
This England feels different: a band of brothers, so assured and comfortable in their own skin. This England bends it like Kieran Trippier. This England still has a big guy at the back who makes it his business, in Southgate’s words, to “get his bonce on everything” in either penalty area, But the new-look England, in their now-familiar 3-3-2-2 system, does many things well and is growing in confidence in front of our eyes. At the very least, Southgate and his players have helped redefine the way the England team is perceived around the world. New heroes have emerged, with a new respect and a new outlook. To see the England fans serenading the team, decorating this vast stadium with their St George’s flags and holding the players in such esteem, made it feel a trick of the imagination that the mood was close to mutiny not even a year ago.
You want an example? Just consider the moment, early on, when Dele Alli nudged the ball one side of Dejan Lovren then slipped around him the other way to reach it first. Again, we saw the hard evidence that John Stones is now the central defender English football always wanted him to be – at least until Mandzukic’s extra-time strike. Alli kept to his promise of playing better than he had against Sweden. Harry Maguire was outstanding. Jordan Henderson produced another high-calibre performance, as he has throughout this tournament, and collectively England worked so hard trying to quell the influence of Luka Modric and Ivan Rakitic. This England feels different: a band of brothers, comfortable in their own skin with a new spirit of togetherness. This England bend it like Trippier. This England have a guy at the back who makes it his business, in Southgate’s words, to “get his bonce on everything” in either penalty area. This England can make their supporters proud again, for the first time in a long time.
As for Trippier, presumably he will be made an honorary citizen of Ramsbottom when he returns as one of the authentic stars of the tournament. Trippier chose a good night to score his first England goal and it was a peach of a free-kick, even if Danijel Subasic, Croatia’s goalkeeper, seemed to get his bearings wrong. Ultimately, though, we were reminded that Southgate was being deadly serious when he warned us his team were far from perfect and it must have been startling for their manager to see the way his players relinquished their control from the midway stage of the second half.
Croatia had six players in their defensive wall after the foul, 20 yards out, from Modric on Alli. Trippier aimed it over two of the biggest men, Lovren and Mandzucic, and applied just the right blend of curl and dip for the ball to arc beneath the crossbar. Trippier’s victory run took him to the touchline, pursued by his teammates, and if there was any tension in the England camp the goal came early enough to soothe their nerves. Until that point, they had played with a conviction that made this feel like it could be the greatest achievement yet for a post-1966 team. Again, it felt like we were watching the compelling evidence that John Stones had become the central defender English football always wanted him to be. Dele Alli kept to his promise of playing better than he had against Sweden. Harry Maguire had been outstanding. Jordan Henderson was keeping midfield safe. England looked firmly in control.
They might also reflect they should have been further ahead by half‑time if Harry Kane, set up by Jesse Lingard, had been able to beat Subasic from close range. The linesman’s offside flag was a mistake and, though it is difficult to know sometimes with VAR, there has to be a reasonable chance the goal would have been given had it not been for Subasic flicking out a boot to divert Kane’s follow-up effort against the post. Yet they could not add a second goal when they were on top and the game swung in Croatia’s favour once Ivan Perisic had scored an improvisational equaliser in the 69th minute, showing great determination to beat Trippier and Kyle Walker to a cross from the right and twisting mid-air to turn an awkward volley, almost head-height, past Jordan Pickford.
Croatia’s players left the pitch at half-time arguing that Maguire should have been penalised for some penalty-box grappling. There was no way Zlatko Dalic’s team would go out without putting up some form of resistance and it was inevitable they would start committing more men forward in the second half. England still managed to toy with our emotions, as they often do, and it needed a goalline clearance to prevent Stones heading in a corner in the first period of extra time. By that point, however, it was the first time in the entire tournament when England have repeatedly looked vulnerable at the back. Even before the additional 30 minutes, Perisic struck the post with a low, diagonal shot and Ante Rebic should have done better with the rebound. It was not an onslaught, but it was not far off. Croatia had enough of the ball in dangerous areas to think they might have completed the recovery before the end of normal time.
It was not until the hour, however, that England were subjected to the first concerted spell of pressure. Kyle Walker blocked one shot with the part of his body where no man wants to be struck. But England were starting to look vulnerable for the first time and Southgate must have desperately wished Lingard and Raheem Sterling could have taken one of the opportunities that came their way earlier in the match. All of which was tremendously disappointing from an English perspective bearing in mind the story of the first half, the energy they put into quelling the influence of Luka Modric and Ivan Rakitic and the euphoria, only five minutes in, when Trippier directed a free-kick over a six-man defensive wall, applying just the right blend of curl and dip for the ball to beat the goalkeeper, Danijel Subasic, and arc beneath the crossbar. As devastated as Trippier was, he will return to England as one of the authentic stars of this tournament.
Midway through the second half, the right-back Sime Vrsaljko sent over a deep cross from the right. For once, it eluded Maguire and Ivan Perisic showed great commitment to get there ahead of Trippier and Walker. Perisic had to improvise, twisting his body mid-air and jabbing out his left boot, sideways on, to turn the ball past Jordan Pickford with a clever volley. Unfortunately for England, Southgate acknowledged their inexperience might have counted against them during that inevitable period in the second half when Croatia committed more men forward in their search for an equaliser.
After that, it must have been startling for Southgate to see the way the game turned in Croatia’s favour. Soon afterwards, Perisic struck the post with a low, diagonal shot and Ante Rebic ought to have done better with the rebound. It was not an onslaught, but it was not far off and Croatia must have felt they had enough of the ball in dangerous areas to complete the recovery before the end of normal time. Yet Stones saw a goalbound header cleared off the line in extra time before the killer moment when he lost Mandzucic and the forward struck the decisive blow. Too often, an England player would rush or miscue a clearance. “Game management,” the coaches call it – and England lacked it. The shape of the team started to unravel and, though Harry Kane will almost certainly win the Golden Boot, the paradox is that he has found it difficult to get behind opposition defences.
Raheem Sterling was substituted after a so-so performance and Jesse Lingard will not easily forget the first-half chance he put wide. Kane’s best chance was given incorrectly as offside and, though it is difficult sometimes to second-guess VAR, maybe it would have stood if he could have put the ball in from close range rather than hitting the post. Hypothetical now: England will never know.
Instead it was Mandzukic with the killer moment, leaving Southgate to talk about the “hardened warriors” in the Croatia team. Stones lost concentration for a split-second and the striker rifled in a left-foot shot. Was there still time for England to save themselves? Could they rouse themselves one last time? Yes and no. The momentum had swung and England’s players will never forget the night they had the lead in a World Cup semi-final and blew it. “We all feel the pain,” Southgate said. Football’s not coming home, after all.
World Cup 2018World Cup 2018
EnglandEngland
CroatiaCroatia
World CupWorld Cup
match reportsmatch reports
Share on FacebookShare on Facebook
Share on TwitterShare on Twitter
Share via EmailShare via Email
Share on LinkedInShare on LinkedIn
Share on PinterestShare on Pinterest
Share on Google+Share on Google+
Share on WhatsAppShare on WhatsApp
Share on MessengerShare on Messenger
Reuse this contentReuse this content