Croatia v Brazil World Cup Quarterfinal Betting Guide

The Route to the Quarterfinals

Croatia

The Croatian national football team have had an interesting journey to reach the quarterfinals of the tournament. Playing in Group F, Croatia won one of their matches and drew two of them, finishing with a total of five points. In the opening fixture, ‘Vatreni’ played out a nil-nil draw with Morocco. They probably had the best chance of the game but could not convert it.

Things had to improve in the second game, and they did. Playing against Canada, the Croatian team conceded early on. However, they showed great resilience and a fighting spirit to come back from behind. Croatia managed to win the match 4-1, courtesy of a brace of goals from Andrej Kramarić and goals for Marko Livaja and Lovro Majer.

In the final group stage match, Croatia played another goalless stalemate against Belgium. The result guaranteed that the Croatian national team would finish above the Belgian side in second place. In the round of 16, Croatia played against Japan and managed to defeat the Asian football team 3-1 on penalties after a 1-1 draw.

Brazil

The Brazilian national football team have also been impressive at the 2022 World Cup. Before a ball was kicked, Brazil were backed as favourites to win the World Cup. They were able to back all of the hype around them by finishing first in Group G. In their opening fixture, the Brazilian team beat Serbia 2-0.

The result was due to an assured and comfortable looking Brazilian team. However, one of the main concerns at the time was the injury that Neymar had picked up. The player had to limp off the pitch and then Tite, the Brazilian manager, confirmed that the player will miss the remaining two group stage games.

Without Neymar on the pitch, Brazil struggled to display the same flair and creativity as they had in the first match. The second fixture of the group stage put Brazil against Switzerland. They had only managed to beat the Swiss team 1-0 in the last few minutes of the match, thanks to a goal from Casemiro. The result secured qualification for the team but was far from impressive.

In their last group stage match, Cameroon defeated Brazil. The Cameroon national football team’s striker, Vincent Aboubakar, scored in the dying moments of the match. His goal secured a famous win for Cameroon over Brazil. However, the Brazilian team still just about managed to finish in first place, having a greater goal difference over Switzerland. In the round of 16, Brazil managed to defeat South Korea comfortably by four goals to one. The victory meant playing in the quarterfinals against Croatia.

Current Odds at mr.play

Right here at mr.play, there are a variety of different betting markets that you can make use of for this quarterfinal match. The favourites to win the match are Brazil, with current odds of 1.32. The Croatian national team have odds 8.55 to win the match whilst a draw pays 4.85 times your bet.

In this sort of game, you could bet on a variety of different outcomes. For instance, a bet on over 1.5 goals pays 1.22 and a bet on both teams to score pays 2.14. It is also possible to bet on double chance results, such as Croatia winning or drawing for odds 3.20, Brazil winning or drawing for odds 1.05 or Brazil or Croatia to win the match for odds 1.16.

Team Overviews & Player Profiles

Croatia

For a nation that only has 3.9 million people, Croatia were one of the fairytale stories at the 2018 Russia World Cup. They managed to reach the World Cup final thanks to their determination and the fighting spirit that Zlatko Dalić brought into the team. Vatreni have impressed in their qualification and group stage matches. Their main player is the captain, Luka Modrić.

At 37-years-old, Luka Modrić is the captain and most skillful player in the Croatian national football team. He was instrumental in the nation’s last World Cup tournament, eventually winning the Balon D’or for the first time at the end of the year. When Modrić won the Balon D’or, he ended a ten-year period of total domination from Cristiano Ronaldo and Lionel Messi. The Croatian will have to play with the same level and flair to give his chance a side of reaching the semi-finals. With the impressive Dominik Livaković in goal, Croatia will certainly fancy their chances, especially if they make it to penalties.

Brazil

In Brazil, there are superstars galore. The team is well-equipped with players from Real Madrid, Manchester United, Barcelona, Chelsea, Paris Saint Germain and so on. Many of the big players at Brazil represent the biggest teams in Europe.

However, despite all of their talent and ability, it appears that a lot of hope rests on the shoulders of Neymar. At 30-years-old, the World Cup is still a trophy that is missing from the Brazilian showman’s trophy cabinet. He has already shown his impact on the pitch, as the whole team seems to play a lot better when he is around.

In the opening fixture, Neymar did not score but his presence guided the team to a 2-0 win over Serbia. He missed the following two games in which Brazil won 1-0 and lost 1-0. In the round of 16, Neymar returned to the field. It took him only a few minutes to provide an assist to Vinicius Junior, before scoring himself from the spot. Neymar certainly brings a lot to the team and will be a massive influence should his team find themselves in the semi-finals of the competition.

A Massive Upset?

It is never easy to predict the outcome of a World Cup match. However, Croatia have been known for knocking out big teams and causing major upsets. At the previous World Cup, Brazil were knocked out in the quarterfinals. Could history repeat itself and see Brazil humbled again in Qatar? We will find out on Friday after the full-time whistle is blown.