Russia vs Croatia
The international break is back and we’ll have some fun matches in store during the midweek.
One of them is when two Slavic nations are about to settle their score in the World Cup 2022 qualifiers since Russia get to host Croatia in Moscow this Wednesday night.
Russia and Croatia together sit on top of Group H with six points each and both are needing a positive result in order to move one step closer to the knockout stages.
And especially with Slovakia and Cyprus lurking, neither of these two can afford to let their guard down at all.
The hosts are bringing in a new coach after their dismal showing in Euro 2020 and he won’t be afforded the luxury to take his time in getting his feet wet.
On the other hand, Croatia are to be led still by Zlatko Dalic, although their squad will look a bit different given the absence of some of their notable players.
While we’re looking forward to this mouthwatering battle, allow SBOTOP to examine these two countries here in this match preview.
Talking Points
Russia welcome a new coach
The Russians are about to undergo a major change since they’ve appointed Valeri Karpin to be their new manager.
Valeri Karpin, who was coaching FK Rostov and is considered as one of the best Russian players of his time, is going to replace Stanislav Cherchesov – who was sacked right after his squad were eliminated early in Euro 2020.
Considering their success on home soil in the 2018 World Cup, Euro 2020 feels like a failure for Russia. So with Karpin now at the helm, whose contract only runs for the duration of the qualifiers as of the moment, his main job is to make sure that his side will progress from Group H.
Karpin has tweaked his squad in the qualifiers, opting to use younger players instead of the more established names.
Team captain Artem Dyzuba, who was instrumental in their previous qualifying group stage matches, was left out of the squad alongside Spartak Moscow striker Aleksandr Sobolev.
Meanwhile, Valeri Karpin called up the exciting Konstantin Tyukavin, who will be eager to prove himself with the big boys despite being only 19 years old.
It remains a mystery on how will Russia look like on Wednesday, but we anticipate them to adopt an attack-minded approach with fresher legs present.
Croatia will miss Luka’s magic
Similar to Russia, Croatia are also going to miss the services of some of their Euro 2020 holdovers due to various reasons.
Midfield maestro Luka Modric is dealing with an adductor injury and he’ll miss the next two games before possibly rejoining the squad against Slovenia on September 7.
The evergreen playmaker recently sat out during Real Madrid’s La Liga fixture against Levante and he was also absent in their 1-0 victory over Real Betis.
Mario Pasalic is in line to replace Luka Modric and he’ll be joined by Mateo Kovacic and Marcelo Brozovic in the midfield.
Meanwhile, VfB Stuttgart’s Borna Sosa got a call up to replace Ante Rebic, who was not included in the lineup.
The most likely reason for his omission is because of his deleted Instagram story where he harshly criticised Zlatko Dalic after his side’s exit in Euro 2020.
History
It has been a while since Russia and Croatia compete in an international setting.
The last time that they met was in the 2018 World Cup where Croatia ended Russia’s Cinderella run in the quarter-final.
When Croatia were threatening to come away with a 2-1 victory to meet England in the semis, Mario Fernandes saved the day with his equaliser during the 115th minute.
But the Russian striker went from hero to zero when his missed his shot in the penalties and Ivan Rakitic delivered the dagger with his spot kick.
Overall, these two have met four times with Croatia winning in two along with two draws.
Betting Tip
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Russia vs Croatia | 1X2 Draw 3.05 |
| September 2, 02:45 (GMT+8) |
Given how these nations look on paper, the World Cup 2022 odds expect a tight, hard-fought affair at the Luzhniki Stadium.
Croatia were given the slight edge as they’re priced at 2.46 to win, while Russia aren’t behind at 2.72 in the 1X2 market readings.
Furthermore, we are confident to recommend going for 1X2 Draw at 3.05 and we also expect to see numerous goals and World Cup 2022 highlights.
The absence of Luka Modric is a major blow for Croatia and him not being present is the reason why this is going to be a draw.
A SHORT EXPLANATION ON HOW OUR ( ) BETS ARE WORTH: |
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|---|---|---|---|
 = €20 (Highly confident) |
= €10 (CONFIDENT) |
= €5 (SOMEWHAT CONFIDENT) |
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Disclaimer: Odds are correct at time of publish.
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