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Argentina face the prospect of an early exit from the World Cup after a horrific mistake by goalkeeper Willy Caballero paved the way for Croatia to win and advance to the last 16.
On a night when many expected Argentina captain Lionel Messi to make the biggest difference, Caballero made the biggest contribution to his team's fate when he tried to lift the ball over Ante Rebic, but it backfired, allowing the striker to hit the ball into the empty net in the 53rd minute.
Messi, who was suspended for most of the match, especially during a dull first half, tried to spur his team on, but neither he nor substitutes Gonzalo Higuain and Pablo Dybala could find the back of the net in Nizhny Novgorod.
The closest Messi came to scoring was a half-chance when he tried to hit the ball after a Maximiliano Meza cross, but Ivan Rakitic blocked it, sending it out of bounds.
It was a tenacious defensive performance from Croatia in the second half that highlighted a moment of magic from their own prodigy, No. 10 Luka Modric.
His beautiful long-range strike beat Caballero to double Croatia's lead, and Rakitic's stoppage-time goal secured a victory that puts the Europeans through to the knockout rounds and leaves them in a strong position to win the group.
#FeelTheMatch
19 май 2023
