Luka Modric, Budweiser Man of the Match
"The most important objective has been realised. We’ve got to take it game by game, let’s not get ahead of ourselves. This win will boost our confidence for the coming games. It’s going to be tough but let’s avoid euphoria, give it a wide berth and keep our feet firmly on the ground to prepare for the next matches."
Argentina failure to test the Croatian keeper, Danijel Subasic in the opening period means this is the third time in four World Cups that Argentina have not managed to produce a single shot on target in the first half of a World Cup match.
They also did so in their quarter-final against Germany in 2006 (eliminated after penalties) and the 2014 final against Germany (1-0 defeat after extra time).
Even with the presence of the Argentina and Barcelona talisman in the game, who played the second game of the 2018 World Cup looking for a measure of redemption after missing a penalty against Iceland that contributed to a disappointing 1-1 draw in his team’s opening game, Argentina still ended up woefully beaten to a dry.
Jorge Sampaoli, Argentina coach
"I had to devise a plan for this match. If I had set things up differently, things might have turned out much better. I don’t think it’s realistic to put the burden on Caballero [for his mistake].
The Croatian side played with so much determination to deny Messi and his teammates opportunities to gain a comfortable position in the World cup group stage. Messi was simply not afforded much in the way of opportunities to do much for Argentina.
Vatreni have been defeated in each of their four World Cup meetings with South American sides before tonight. Their only goal in those four games was Marcelo's own goal in the Brazil 2014 Opening Match. Tonight, Croatia broke the CONMEBOL curse with a stunning shocking 3-0 victory over the great Argentina.
Zlatko Dalic, Croatia coach
"From day one I’ve trusted my team. I didn’t believe we would be through after the second game, but I believed we would be through eventually. Argentina weren’t confused, we were excellent.
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