Year: 2018

As the Balkan nation overcame the committed Russian side, that Saturday night in Sochi is sure to live long in the memories of every Croatian. The Croatians won 4-3 on penalties after their dramatic quarter-final clash ended 2-2 after extra time. At The Fisht Stadium, there were some notable and fantastic performances in Croatia’s triumph. Despite nursing a leg injury in the latter stages of the contest, goalkeeper Danijel Subasic made some important saves. Ivan Rakitic showed his composure of scoring his side’s winning penalty in a shoot-out for a second straight match. The key to assuring Dalic’s side in continuing their journey at this world final was the performance of Andrej Kramaric. The 27-year-old Kramaric said: “Honestly, I’m not even aware of what we’ve achieved. I  am proud to be part of this team that will remain enrolled as one of the biggest in Croatian sports. But we do not want to stop now; we have to make it a step further.” Reaching the semi-finals and its magnitude for the first time since the country’s World Cup debut in France 1998 was a huge evident for celebration the striker and his team-mates witnessed back home. Kramaric said: “We here in Russia do not feel the joy of our fans in the cities of Croatia, but surely the emotions are very special. Now, we have to get together and continue this way, for our great fans.” The Vatreni have shown a level of resiliency to reach this stage of the competition, having endured a similar test against Denmark in the Round of 16. Andrej Kramaric commented: “The match against Russia is yet another victory of our character. We have nerves of steel; we showed how calm and self-confident we are. Perhaps the match was not the most beautiful, but it will be remembered. The goal I scored was dedicated to my family and friends. I will certainly remember it. It is a goal in the World Cup.” By winning the tournament against the hosts, Russia sets up a showdown against England in the last hour in Moscow on Wednesday.  Kramaric rates highly the Three Lions side.  He said: “Before the World Cup, I chose England as one of the favorites. They are young and fast, so it will not be easy for us. It will be an interesting game and we will fight to make the final.”  

For Jordan Pickford, it has been quite the week. The goalkeeper of England, on Tuesday, played an instrumental role in propelling the Three Lions to their first ever World Cup penalty shootout victory. As he pulled off of save to keep Sweden at bay in his side’s quarter-final victory they saw him emerge as a hero once more. It was Pickford’s acrobatic skills that ensured the win was a comfortable one. He managed to deny Marcus Berg on two occasions, first diving to his left to tip a goal-bound header round the post and then once again reaching up instinctively to palm a snapshot over the bar. Pickford has joined Sunderland’s Academy when he was only eight, with signing his first contract, a full-time contract in 2011, but went out on loan to lower league sides for first-team experience. Those experiences have helped to make him the player that he is today, says the modest keeper. Despite thriving in that shootout win over Colombia, the Budweiser Man of the Match from England’s quarter-final win would always pick shutouts over penalty drama.   Pickford added on the victory over Sweden: “The highlight of that was the clean sheet, but it’ll go on my mantelpiece, that one, it’s about  keeping performing and getting better, and the more games you play, the better you become. This is where I want to be. I just want to be playing in the biggest matches against big teams. I just keep myself level-headed and do my best for the team. I wasn’t born the last time England reached a World Cup semi-final. We have always said we would it take one game at a time but we can go on and create our own history. We are a young side but we’re an experienced young side, as daft as that sounds. We know how to work and play for each other, and what our strengths are. We know how to win.” Southgate has also hailed the Sunderland native, lauding him as a model for the next generation of goalkeepers aspire to.