Croatia vs Belgium Prediction: Seems a Well Balanced Face Off

With much at stake for the teams in Group F, Croatia will be up against Belgium at the Ahmed bin Ali Stadium in Qatar. Going in the contest, Croatia leads the Group standings with 4 points, whereas Belgium finds stands 3rd with 3 points. If Croatia manages to win, they will go through to the Round of 16. However, if Belgium manages to win, it will have to wait for the result of Morocco and Belgium’s match. Among a few concerns for Belgium includes the unavailability of Amadou Onana due to red card suspension. The last time these two sides played a friendly fixture, Belgium won 1-0.

The fantastic win over Canada (4-1) has given Croatia an outright chance of going through to the Round of 16. Croatia won’t be taking the upcoming fixture lightly as much is on the line, and Belgium will be warming up to the upset the favorites. Coach, Zlatko Dalic will be confident about his approach and 4-3-3 formation, which is likely to play with much more control and an attacking approach. Prior to the encounter on Thursday, Croatia, which is now ranked 12th in the world according to FIFA, had a solid run of results. They had gone undefeated in their previous eight games across all competitions, and they had only lost one of their previous 18 international matches before Euro 2020. Croatia hasn’t defeated Belgium since a 1-0 friendly triumph in 2010, but the mood in the Croatian camp is positive, and Dalic and company will believe they have a good opportunity of taking advantage of their opponents’ inconsistent play on Thursday.

Livakovic; Juranovic, Lovren, Gvardiol, Sosa; Modric, Brozovic, Kovacic; Kramaric, Livaja, Perisic

Belgium started their World Cup 2022 journey with a win over Canada (1-0). However, they couldn’t stick to winning momentum and lost to Morocco (0-2). Irrespective of Morocco and Canada’s game, Belgium must win in order to keep it’s hopes alive for the qualification. With a 3-4-2-1 formation, Belgium can certainly strike in the first half of play. Amadou Onana’s suspension forces Martinez to make at least one change to Belgium’s lineup on Thursday. Youri Tielemans is anticipated to fill in for Onana alongside Axel Witsel. Martinez is optimistic that the striker will be able to start against Croatia. While De Bruyne and Eden Hazard are likely to keep their positions despite the striking duo’s struggles to make an impact in Qatar thus far, Michy Batshuayi remains the most probable contender to lead the line for the Red Devils.

Courtois; Castagne, Alderweireld, Vertonghen; Meunier, Tielemans, Witsel, Carrasco; De Bruyne, E. Hazard; Batshuayi

There’s no doubt about Belgium’s strengths and overall gameplay. It’s just that they don’t have a decent match form coming in this game. Croatia are likely to play fearlessly without any sorts of pressure, whereas Belgium will be under the pump. The game total is expected to be over 2.5 goals, and both sides to score. The final scoreline is likely to be 2-1.

• Croatia to Win for 2.62
• Luka Modric to Score Anytime - Yes for 5.50
• Both Teams to Score - Yes for 1.78

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