Argentina v Croatia World Cup Semi-final Betting Guide

The Road to the Semi-finals

Argentina

‘Al Albiceleste’ are one of the favourites to win the World Cup. The nation recovered from a shaky start to their campaign following the 2-1 defeat to Saudi Arabia in the opening fixture. Following the defeat, Argentina went on to win all of their following matches, including defeating both Mexico and Poland 2-0 in the group stage. The two wins meant Argentina topped their group with six points.

In the first knockout match, Argentina played against Australia in the round of 16. Al Albiceleste defeated Australia by two goals to one. After the win, Argentina was drawn against the Netherlands in the quarterfinal, who had also won their group and defeated the United States in their knockout match.

The quarterfinal between the Netherlands and Argentina was arguably the best game of the tournament so far. Although Argentina was leading 2-0 going into the 80^th minute, ‘Oranje’ substitute Wout Weghorst scored two late goals to send the tie to extra time. After an uneventful thirty minutes, Argentina eventually defeated the Netherlands on penalties. The match had a record 18 bookings.

In 2014, Argentina reached the World Cup final. In the semi-finals, they played against the Netherlands and defeated the Dutch national team on penalties. If history is to repeat itself, Argentina may find themselves in the World Cup final after Tuesday evening.

Croatia

‘Vatreni’ have overcome the odds to find themselves in the semi-final of a World Cup for successive tournaments. The Croatian national team finished second in Group F, which contained Morocco, Belgium and Canada. Their opening match was a nil-nil draw with Morocco, who are also in the semi-finals of the World Cup. In their second match, they beat Canada 4-1 before drawing nil-nil again with Belgium.

Having finished second in the group with five points, Croatia played against Japan in the round of 16. Although they went behind in the match, Ivan Perišić scored an equaliser that sent the tie to extra time. Neither team could score a second during extra time which meant penalties were on the cards. Dominik Livaković, the goalkeeper of Croatia, saved impressively to knock Japan out and set-up a quarterfinal tie against Brazil.

Before a ball was kicked, Brazil were favourites to win the 2022 World Cup. However, the Brazilian national team could not score against Croatia in 90 minutes, sending the tie into extra time. In the second quarter of extra time, Neymar opened the scoring for Brazil. With only a few minutes to go, Croatia equalised in the 117^th minute through Bruno Petković. Yet again, Livaković was key to the success of Croatia, saving a penalty from Rodrygo to send Croatia into the semi-finals.

Vatreni were runners-up in the 2018 Russia World Cup. The team was captained by Real Madrid’s Luka Modrić, who is still showing his class at 37 years of age. Croatia will aim to reach the final of the World Cup for a second successive time, perhaps meeting France in the final again.

Current Odds at mr.play

There are several betting markets available for the Argentina v Croatia semi-final. Here at mr.play, the 1.77 odds favour Argentina to win the match whilst the odds on Croatia are 4.75. If the tie goes to extra time, the odds on a draw are 3.25.

If you do not want to bet on the result but on other markets, we have a variety of options for you. A bet on both teams to score pays out at 2.14 whilst the odds of over 1.5 goals in the match are 1.45.

A popular bet among players is the double chance, which gives the player lower odds but is also easier to win. The odds of Argentina winning or drawing are 1.16 whilst the odds of Croatia winning or drawing are 1.98. A bet on either Argentina or Croatia to win in 90 minutes pays 1.31 times your stake.

Team Overviews & Player Profiles

Argentina

In recent history, both Argentina and Croatia have played in a World Cup final. That gives this match a little bit of bite, as both teams will want to play in the most viewed sporting event in the world.

La Albiceleste were close to winning the World Cup in 2014. Lionel Messi captained the Argentinian national team, although they lost 1-0 to Germany in Brazil. In Qatar, Argentina has another chance of reaching the final, mostly down to Messi.

The seven-time Balon D’or winner has been in sensational form. He has scored a goal in every match that Argentina have played, except for a 2-0 win over Poland in the group stage. Furthermore, Messi has provided two assists in the tournament as well. He is currently in second place for the golden boot on four goals. Only Frenchman Kylian Mbappé has scored more (5).

Croatia

Vatreni are on course to reach the final of the World Cup for a second time in a row. If they reach the final, there is a strong possibility that they will play against France, the current World Cup champions. Croatia will be aiming to win the trophy having failed to do so four years ago.

In the 2018 World Cup, captain Luka Modrić was pivotal in Croatia’s successful campaign. He finds himself in a similar situation in Qatar, aiming to captain his team to the final for the second time. However, whilst his expert touch is important for Croatia’s chances, their real standout performer is Livaković. The goalkeeper has kept Croatia in the tournament time and time again. If the tie is decided on penalties, you would probably back the keeper to produce a string of saves and ensure that his team advanced to the final round.

A Battle of the Runners-up

Argentina and Croatia both know what it is like to reach the World Cup final. The two teams have played against each other a total of four times, winning twice each. Their first meeting was in the 1998 World Cup where Argentina defeated Croatia 1-0 in the group stage. In their more recent meeting, Croatia defeated Argentina 3-0 in the 2018 World Cup group stage. Many of the same Croatian players are in Qatar, as Vatreni aim to defeat Croatia for the third time.