Argentina vs. Croatia Prediction, Betting Tips & Odds | Semifinals

In the first semi-final of the 2022 World Cup, Argentina and superstar Lionel Messi will face the (once again) sensational team from Croatia. The Croatians eliminated Brazil by surprise in the quarter-finals, while Argentina beat the Netherlands.

We provide you with a detailed preview of the match, as well as the best odds and predictions, and offer you our Argentina – Croatia betting picks.

The road to the semifinals

Argentina started the tournament with a shock, losing 2-1 to Saudi Arabia. After that, however, the South Americans did not show any more weakness: they won 2-0 against Mexico and Poland, and in the round of 16 they defeated Australia 2-1. Against the Netherlands, the Argentinians put up a tough fight that lasted until the penalty shootout, where they also came out on top.

Croatia can be described as a phenomenon at the current World Cup. In the tournament so far, the Croats have only won one match after 90 minutes 4-1 against Canada. They drew 0-0 against Morocco and Belgium, and after a 1-1 draw with Japan in the round of 16, they had to go through a penalty shoot-out. This was also the case in the quarter-final against Brazil, where goalkeeper Dominik Livakovic was again the hero when it came to penalties.

The match will take place at the Lusail Iconic Stadium in Lusail on Tuesday 13 December at 10pm Qatar time (8pm CET).

Latest betting odds

Argentina are considered favorites against Croatia by all international bookmakers.

Our ➜ top bookmaker Betsson offers odds of @1.88 for a win by Argentina. In the event of a draw and extra time, you can win back 3.40 times your stake, and for a win by Croatia after 90 minutes you can get odds of @5.00 at Bet365.

 

	➜ visit Bookmaker	➜ visit Bookmaker	➜ visit Bookmaker
Argentina to win	1.83	1.88	1.89
Draw	3.30	3.40	3.35
Croatia to win	5.00	4.65	4.50

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World Cup 2022 Betting Argentina vs. Croatia

1. Argentina Match preview
2. Croatia Match preview
3. Team comparison
4. The last duel
5. Over/under betting pick
6. Match Betting prediction
7. Correct score bet
8. FAQ

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Argentina World Cup 2022 Preview

Argentina was able to stabilise itself in the course of the tournament and, as the World Cup progressed, impressed above all with its fighting spirit. The “Gauchos” still have plenty of room for improvement, but the quarter-final against the Netherlands in particular showed that Lionel Scaloni’s team can put up a fight.

A goal by Nahuel Molina and a converted penalty by Lionel Messi put Argentina on the winning track until the 73rd minute. But the Netherlands fought back and equalized with a brace from Wout Weghorst, sending the game into extra time.

The momentum of the match was supposed to be on the side of the Netherlands and Louis van Gaal’s team was convincing in the first half of extra time. But then Argentina showed that they are equipped with great mentality. In the second half of extra time, the Netherlands was very lucky not to lose the game. Nevertheless, the match ended 2-2 and in the penalty shootout Argentina kept their nerves.

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But it was a costly victory for the Argentines. All in all, there were 16 yellow cards and one yellow-red card in the match. With the two full-backs Marcos Acuña and Gonzalo Montiel, two Argentines are suspended for the semi-final against Croatia.

But there is also good news for coach Lionel Scaloni: veteran star Ángel di María was substituted in the win over the Netherlands and is thus available again for the semi-final. In addition, Inter Milan striker Lautaro Martínez scored the decisive penalty, which may have given him some much-needed self-confidence. So far, the Inter star has had a mixed World Cup.

Scaloni could change the formation again for the match against Croatia. Against the Dutch, he played a 3-5-2 system to mirror the formation of the opponent. Against Croatia, it is likely that the Argentines will again play in a 4-3-3, also because the suspensions of Acuña and Montiel mean that two important alternatives for the wing-back positions are missing.

Argentina previous World Cup matches

Date	Opponent	Venue	Result	XG	Possession	Accuracy	Duels won
22/11/2022	Saudi Arabia	N	1 – 2	2.39 : 0.29	68.53%	84.49%	48.44%
26/11/2022	Mexico	N	2 – 0	0.51 : 0.09	58.17%	85.18%	49.51%
30/11/2022	Poland	N	2 – 0	3.62 : 0.13	71.95%	93.01%	49.48%
03/12/2022	Australia	N	2 – 1	2.30 : 0.71	59.35%	89.58%	48.48%
09/12/2022	Netherlands	N	2 – 2 (P)	1.89 : 0.58	49.57%	83.95%	53.67%

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Croatia World Cup 2022 Preview

Croatia were already severely challenged at the group stage. Against Belgium and also against the surprise team from Morocco, they both drew 0-0. This was also the reason why Belgium had to go home early.

While they failed to put in a commanding performance against Japan in the round of 16, Zlatko Dalic’s team managed to surprise against Brazil. Against Japan, both teams put the game to sleep for a long time, but against Brazil, Croatia surprised by playing along with the World Cup favourites. They didn’t just want to hide, but tried to put pressure on the Selecao.

As expected, the Croatian central midfield played an enormously important role. Luka Modric is the architect of the Croatian team anyway, but the performances of Mateo Kovacic and Marcelo Brozovic were also top notch.

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At first glance, it doesn’t look as if Croatia’s squad is strong enough, but time and again the runners-up prove observers wrong. Dinamo Zagreb’s Bruno Petkovic, for example, scored the equalizer in the last breaths of extra time to send Croatia into the semi-finals.

In the penalty shoot-out, the Brazilians’ dream of a sixth World Cup title was finally over. Dominik Livakovic saved Rodrygo’s first penalty and centre-back Marquinhos missed at the end to send Croatia through to the semi-finals.

Qualitatively, of course, they were clearly inferior to the Brazilians, but the Croatians are simply the epitome of a tournament team. The experienced team plays extremely hard and knows how to reduce the pace of the game and then pick it up again. A quality that will also cause problems for the Argentinians…

Croatia previous World Cup matches

Date	Opponent	Venue	Result	XG	Possession	Accuracy	Duels won
23/11/2022	Morocco	N	0 – 0	0.74 : 0.25	63.64%	87.38%	42.16%
27/11/2022	Canada	N	4 – 1	1.50 : 0.40	45.98%	83.33%	51.50%
01/12/2022	Belgium	N	0 – 0	0.73 : 2.18	49.07%	86.68%	41.62%
05/12/2022	Japan	N	1 – 1 (P)	0.96 : 1.22	59.76%	85.32%	48.63%
09/12/2022	Brasil	N	1 – 1 (P)	0.71 : 1.34	51.57%	88.37%	49.10%

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Team comparison

In favor of Argentina:

+ The team was able to improve more and more as the tournament went on.
+ High level of mentality and fighting spirit
+ Lionel Messi is in good form and has already scored four goals in the tournament.
+ The central midfield is slowly settling in and is much more stable than at the beginning of the tournament.
+ Goalkeeper Emiliano Martínez gained self-confidence in the win against the Netherlands
+ …as did Lautaro Martínez, who converted the decisive penalty kick

In favor of Croatia:

+ The epitome of a tournament team
+ Enormously stable central midfield
+ Brimming with self-confidence after the win against Brazil+ Incredibly solid central defence with Gvardiol and Lovren
+ Strong squad density, even if the big names are missing from the bench
+ Two suspended full-backs for Argentina

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The last duel

Croatia and Argentina have met five times since 1994 – twice at World Cups and both times in the group stage.

In 1998, Argentina won against the strong Croats, but in 2018, the tide turned and this year’s semi-final duel with the Argentines could be déjá vu for Croatia. On the way to the final in Moscow, the Croats won smoothly 3-0. The goals were scored by Ante Rebic, Luka Modric and Ivan Rakitic.

For the Argentines, only three players – Otamendi, Tagliafico and Messi – were in the starting eleven, and they are likely to start this time as well. For the Croats, there are four with Lovren, Brozovic, Modric and Perisic. This means that we will see different teams in the semi-finals of the 2022 World Cup than in the group stage in 2018.

After five games, by the way, the international match record of the two teams is absolutely even: Both teams won two matches and one match ended in a draw. In terms of goal difference, the Croats are just ahead with 7-5.

Potential opponents for the final

The winner of the clash between Argentina and Croatia will face the winner of the semi-final between France and Morocco in the final.

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Argentina – Croatia Over Under Prediction

Croatia in particular have shown in the course of the tournament so far that they are a very pragmatic “under” team. Only against Canada there was an “over 2.5”, which was also due to the fact that Canada acted too naively and ran into an open knife.

Against Argentina, Croatia will again rely on defensive stability and play from a secure defense. Once again, the underdog’s central midfield will be a key factor in the game.

Argentina showed some improvement offensively, but the “Albiceleste” still lacked creativity. This team is not characterized by great playing strength or technical finesse, and so it is likely that a battle will develop here, which the Croats will gladly accept in this semi-final. We are therefore betting that not many goals will be scored here.

Argentina – Croatia Prediction

Croatia already had to go to extra time three times in the knockout phase on their way to the 2018 World Cup final. Twice they won on penalties, once after 120 minutes. This could happen again this time. Against Japan and Brazil, the Croats had to go all the way to the penalty shootout.

The duel between Argentina and Croatia also looks like it will go to extra time. Whoever can beat the Brazilians should also be able to do so against the Argentines, whose quality is weaker. Croatia can let the clock work for them and know that they have nerves of steel.

Many observers believe that the Croatians could advance again, but that the Argentinians are more likely to reach the final. This gives the two-time world champions from South America more pressure and more to prove. Croatia have the quality to save themselves in the “overtime” once again and thus we bet on a draw.

Argentina – Croatia Correct Score Bet

Argentina are one of the stronger teams in the World Cup offensively, but this is not necessarily due to their great playing quality, but rather to good decisions in decisive moments. The team around superstar Lionel Messi will also get their opportunities against Croatia.

Not only in the quarter-final against the Netherlands, but also before that, it was evident that Argentina also have defensive weaknesses and repeatedly allow their opponents to create chances. The Croats, on the other hand, have been very efficient so far and have always created opportunities. Our result tip is that both teams will score a goal in regular time – and anything is possible in extra time!

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FAQ – Questions and answers about Argentina – Croatia at the 2022 World Cup