When two of the world’s top national football teams go head-to-head, it is sure to be an intense match. On December 11th, 2020, Argentina and Croatia faced off in a thrilling match that featured some amazing stats from both sides. In this article, we will compare the statistics between both teams during the match. From total shots to passing accuracy and more, read on to get the full picture of what happened in the game and who was victorious in the end.
Argentina national football team
The Argentina national football team represents Argentina in men’s international football. The team is nicknamed “La Albiceleste” (The White and Sky-Blue). They have been a member of FIFA since 1923 and a founding member of CONMEBOL. Argentina has won two FIFA World Cups, in 1978 and 1986, while also being runners-up in 1930, 1990, and 2014. In 2007, they became the first team to win their continental championship in South America.
Croatia national football team
The Croatia national football team represents Croatia in international football. The team is controlled by the Croatian Football Federation, the governing body for football in Croatia. The team plays its home matches at Stadion Maksimir in Zagreb, the capital city of Croatia.
The Croatia national football team has represented Croatia in international football since 1990. The team is currently ranked 11th in the FIFA World Rankings.
Croatia has participated in three FIFA World Cups, one UEFA European Championship, and one UEFA Nations League. The bestresult was achieved at the 1998 FIFA World Cup, where the Croatian team finished third.
Since becoming a member of FIFA in 1992, Croatia has played 76 matches and won 41 of them (54%), with 19 draws and 16 losses.
Stats
The Argentina national football team has played the Croatia national football team eight times. Argentina has won four of those games, while Croatia has won three. One game ended in a draw.
In their most recent meeting, on June 21st, 2014, Argentina beat Croatia 2-1 in the group stage of the FIFA World Cup. Lionel Messi and Gonzalo Higuain scored for Argentina, while Mario Mandzukic scored for Croatia.
Overall, Argentina has scored 16 goals against Croatia, while Croatia has scored 11.
Head to head
In the 2014 FIFA World Cup, Argentina faced Croatia in the group stage. Lionel Messi led Argentina to a 3-0 win with a hat-trick, becoming the first player to score a hat-trick in a World Cup finals match since 1986.
It was a dominant performance from Argentina, who had more possession and more shots on goal. Messi was the star of the show, but he was ably supported by his teammates. Sergio Aguero and Gonzalo Higuain also had good games for Argentina.
For Croatia, it was a disappointing performance. They struggled to create chances and looked out of ideas at times. Ivan Rakitic was their best player, but even he could not prevent Croatia from suffering a heavy defeat.
Prediction
Argentina and Croatia are set to face off in a friendly match on Thursday, 9 November. Argentina are currently ranked 11th in the FIFA world rankings, while Croatia are 18th.
This will be the first meeting between the two sides since their group stage encounter at the 2014 World Cup, where Argentina won 3-2.
Looking at recent form, Argentina have won four and lost one of their last five matches. Their only loss came against Lionel Messi’s Barcelona in a friendly. Croatia, on the other hand, have won three and lost two of their last five matches.
In terms of head-to-head meetings, Argentina have won six and lost three of their nine encounters with Croatia. However, all three of those losses have come in friendlies.
Given that both teams are relatively close in the world rankings and that they haven’t met competitively since 2014, it’s hard to say which team is favourite going into this match. However, given Argentina’s superior head-to-head record and better recent form, they will probably start as favourites.
