Croatia will take on Japan for a spot in the quarter-finals today at 3:00 pm GMT at Al Janoub Stadium. Here’s Croatia vs. Japan Starting XI.
The Samurai Blues have been incredible in the World Cup. They took down Germany and Spain by 2-1 goals to top Group E.
On the other hand, the 2018 World Cup runners-up Croatia finished 2nd in Group F, sharing points with both Morocco and Belgium and a 4-1 win over Canada.
The winner of this game will face Brazil or South Korea in the quarter-finals.
Croatia vs Japan | Round of 16
Date: Monday, 5 December 2022
Start Time: 4:00 pm Croatia Time | 12:00 am Japan Time (Tuesday)
Venue: Al Janoub, Al Wakrah
Live: SBS, FOX, Telemundo, fuboTV, Peacock Premium, TSN, ITV1, ITVX, BBC One, BBC iPlayer
Croatia’s Starting XI vs. Japan
| Formation | 4-3-3 |
| Manager | Zlatko Dalic |
| Goalkeeper | Livakovic |
| Defender | Juranovic, Lovern, Gvardiol, Barisic |
| Midfielder | Kovacic, Brozovic, Modric |
| Forward | Kramaric, Petkovic, Perisic |
Team News
Borna Sosa won’t start due to illness. Petkovic comes in the frontline to play alongside Andrej Kramaric and Ivan Perisic. Real Madrid legend Luka Modric will be crucial in the midfield.
Japan’s Starting XI vs. Croatia
| Formation | 3-4-2-1 |
| Manager | Hajime Moriyasu |
| Goalkeeper | Gonda |
| Defender | Tomiyasu, Yoshida, Taniguchi |
| Midfielder | Ito, Endo, Morita, Nagatomo; Doan, Kamada |
| Forward | Maeda |
Team News
Ritsu Doan has been a super-sub in this tournament, scoring a goal against both Germany and Japan after coming off the bench. He will start against Croatia.
Daichi Kamada and Daizen Maeda will be crucial too in the frontline.
