Izuchukwu Okosi
Tournament favourites Brazil Friday evening were eliminated from the 2022 FIFA World Cup in Qatar by Croatia via penalties after an intense 120 minutes of football.
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Prime Business Africa looks at three key factors that played a role in how the game played out.
Croatia have advanced to the semifinals stage while Brazil will be making their way back home begore noon on Saturday.
The likely finalists of the 2022 FIFA World Cup in Qatar is beginning to take shape and the end of the weekend there final four will be made known.
1. Brazil’s Wing Play
Brazil elected to use the wings to launch most of their attacking onslaught but in doing so it only allowed the Croats to overload their midfield.
That stifled the threats that Brazil would have had to cause the Europeans any problems because the spaces were congested hence passing lanes were blocked.
2. Pace Was At A Premium
Brazil flattered to deceive for most parts of the game. They didn’t fire on all cylinders and lacked the injection of pace when they needed to add power to finesse.
Croatia were resilient at the back and prevented the Selecao from finding their rhythm. Zlatko Dalic will be pretty pleased with his team’s effort in the first half.
READ ALSO: Casemiro Produces Class Finish As Brazil Defeats Switzerland, Reaches Knockout Stage
3. The Star Bench Didn’t Win
The Brazilians had a richer substitutes’ bench with bigger players in top clubs across Europe but it was the more disciplined Croatian that triumphed.
Croatia knew their limitations and were not pressing the panic buttons when it seemed that Brazil were dominant. They just realised when to attack and defend.
4. Penalty Lottery
When Croatia equalised, it was palpable that the theme of the World Cup was about to be witnessed, which is shocking upsets.
Croatia had a goalkeeper that was more confident in handling the pressure from 12 yards on Friday.
Izuchukwu Okosi is a Nigerian sports and entertainment journalist with two decades of experience in the media industry having begun his media journey in 2002 as an intern at Mundial Sports International (MSI) and Africa Independent Television (AIT), owners of Daar Communications Plc.
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