World Cup 2026: Croatia take all three points in first meeting with Ghana to book Round of 32 spot

Croatia secured qualification to the Round of 32 at the 2026 FIFA World Cup after battling past Ghana in a tense and entertaining encounter on Saturday night.

Heading into the decisive group fixture, Croatia knew victory would guarantee progress to the knockout phase, and they eventually delivered in dramatic fashion after surviving a spirited challenge from Ghana in the first-ever meeting between the two nations.

Croatia strike first after early pressure

Croatia looked threatening from the opening stages and nearly grabbed the lead in spectacular fashion in the 17th minute. Nikola Vlasic controlled a clever pass brilliantly on the edge of the area before unleashing a powerful effort that crashed against the left post.

The Europeans continued to push forward and almost earned a penalty midway through the first half when Ante Budimir went down inside the box under pressure from a defender, but the referee waved away the appeals.

Their dominance was eventually rewarded in the 31st minute through Mateo Kovacic and Petar Sucic. Kovacic threaded a neat pass into the path of Sucic, who produced an excellent long-range strike that beat the goalkeeper and found the bottom left corner to hand Croatia a deserved 1-0 advantage.

Ghana responded before the break and came close to restoring parity in the 40th minute when Antoine Semenyo beat his marker inside the penalty area, only to see his effort drift narrowly wide of the left post.

Ghana fight back before late Croatian winner

After struggling for large spells of the game, Ghana found their breakthrough in the 73rd minute. Ernest Nuamah delivered a dangerous free-kick into the box and Derrick Luckassen reacted quickest to fire the ball into the bottom right corner for the equaliser.

The celebrations were briefly paused after referee Drew Fischer signalled for a VAR review to check for a possible offside during the build-up. Following a lengthy review, the goal was eventually confirmed in the 77th minute, sparking wild celebrations from the Ghana players and supporters.

Croatia, however, responded strongly in search of the winning goal. Benjamin Asare produced an important save in the 82nd minute to deny Mario Pasalic after the midfielder connected with a dangerous pass near the edge of the area.

The decisive moment finally arrived a minute later. Luka Modric whipped in a superb corner kick that found Nikola Vlasic near the penalty spot, and the Croatian attacker guided a precise header that bounced off the post and into the bottom left corner to restore his side’s lead at 2-1.

The late strike proved enough to send Croatia into the knockout stage, finishing second in Group L. England and Ghana both advanced from the group to the Round of 32 stage as well.