England and Croatia booked their places in the semi-finals of the 2018 FIFA World Cup in Russia after winning their respective quarter-final ties on Saturday.
The day began with the Three Lions seeing off Sweden by a 2-0 scoreline in Samara. Harry Maguire and Dele Alli found the net as England powered past a well-organised team, but one lacking in enough firepower up top despite goalkeeper Jordan Pickford putting in a fine display.
England learned their last-four opponents when Croatia beat hosts Russia 4-3 on penalties at the Fisht Stadium in Sochi later in the day to complete the bracket:
Ivan Rakitic scored the winner in the shootout after Denis Cheryshev, Andrej Kramaric, Domagoj Vida and Mario Fernandes found the net in a 2-2 draw after extra time.
Of the two matchups, Belgium against France on Tuesday looks the more enticing, yet England's meeting with Croatia has a few intriguing layers, including the battle between midfield playmakers Alli and Luka Modric.
Croatia vs. England: Wednesday, July 11
The good news for the Three Lions is their chief source of creativity is back on form ahead of the business end of the tournament. Alli scored a minute before the hour mark to erase the memory of an erratic first half, during which he struggled to find his radar in possession.
In the process, Alli also took a prominent place in the record books for his country:
The goal buoyed Alli's confidence, with the 22-year-old showcasing some deft touches and keen vision between the lines. One of Alli's favourite targets was Manchester City forward Raheem Sterling, whose pace and movement gave Sweden a host of problems:
This combination can carry England into the final, provided those around Alli and Sterling find a way to control Modric. The 32-year-old ran the show against Russia, even though he couldn't help the Blazers muster their usual fluency.
Modric was still heavily involved in all the good things his nation did going forward:
Keeping a pass-master this astute under wraps won't be easy, but England do have some midfielders with destructive tendencies. Specifically, skipper Jordan Henderson, Eric Dier and Ruben Loftus-Cheek can win any physical battle with Modric.
It will also be important for Alli or Jesse Lingard to shadow Modric when he's on the ball.
France vs. Belgium: Tuesday, July 10
Two teams full of goals will meet when France take on Belgium in St. Petersburg, with both sides playing an entertaining brand of football.
Pace and versatility along the forward lines define both squads. For France, the combination of Antoine Griezmann and Kylian Mbappe offers the speed and movement to move Belgium's experienced defenders out of their comfort zones.
In particular, Mbappe's long stride and comfort playing out wide or through the middle can wreck the back three Belgium coach Roberto Martinez favours. Martinez is able to call on Manchester City's Vincent Kompany, as well as Tottenham Hotspur duo Toby Alderweireld and Jan Vertonghen.
They will need to take turns tracking the runs of Griezmann. His goal in the 2-0 quarter-final win against Uruguay capped a typically busy and intelligent performance:
Belgium can counter with a host of talented attackers of their own, including Romelu Lukaku, who has four goals to his credit in Russia. The question is where will Lukaku play after Martinez moved him around for the excellent 2-1 win over Brazil in the last eight?
Writing for The Independent, Zonal Marking's Michael Cox detailed how Martinez used Lukaku in a way he once did when the pair were at Everton:
"Having previously used a 3-4-3 formation throughout this tournament, here he switched to a 4-3-1-2, or arguably a 4-3-3 with a false nine, and used Romelu Lukaku as a right-sided forward, a position he'd occasionally played under Martinez at Everton with great success. Eden Hazard was therefore playing the part of Kevin Mirallas, which roughly works based upon nationality alone, and left Kevin De Bruyne as the Steven Naismith figure, a less obvious comparison."
Having Lukaku and Eden Hazard operate out wide, while playing without a natural centre-forward, pulled Brazil's defence out of shape. A similar ploy could do the same against a France side also favouring a back four.
Whichever forward line fires first will likely decide this semi-final. Both teams have ample match-winners up top, but the big names have to deliver when it counts.
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