Table of Contents
ALEXANDRIA, Va. - Croatia is moving on — and, for at least a little longer, it is doing so from Alexandria.
The Vatreni beat Ghana 2-1 at Lincoln Financial Field in Philadelphia on Saturday night to finish second in Group L and reach the World Cup's Round of 32, then returned overnight to the Northern Virginia city that has served as their base camp throughout the tournament. The result extends a stay that, until the final whistle, had no certain future.
The winning goal carried a fitting signature. With seven minutes left and the match level, 40-year-old captain Luka Modrić — playing in what is widely expected to be his final World Cup — swung in a corner that Nikola Vlašić headed home in the 83rd minute. It was the decisive moment in a match Croatia needed to control its own fate, and it sent Zlatko Dalić's side through behind group winner England.
A rocket, an equalizer, and a header
Croatia took the lead in the 31st minute through Petar Sučić, the young midfielder who lashed a long-range strike into the net for his second career international goal — and ended Ghana's run of clean sheets at the tournament. Brief readers will recognize Sučić from the team's Alexandria stay; days earlier, he had described his near-telepathic partnership with fellow midfielder Martin Baturina.
Ghana, already assured of advancing, drew level in the 73rd minute when Derrick Luckassen volleyed home from a free kick, a goal confirmed after a lengthy video review. The equalizer briefly put Ghana on course for second place — until Modrić and Vlašić answered.
Joško Gvardiol, the Manchester City defender who spoke in Alexandria days earlier about his return from a broken leg, came on as a late substitute. He had previewed a matchup with his City teammate Antoine Semenyo, who started for Ghana.
Both Alexandria teams advance
The result means both World Cup teams that called the Alexandria area home this month are through to the knockout round. Croatia finished second in Group L; Ghana, which based itself in Alexandria briefly before relocating to Rhode Island, finished third and advanced to the knockout stage for the first time since 2010. Ghana now faces Colombia in the Round of 32 on Friday, July 3, at 9:30 p.m. ET in Kansas City. England won the group, beating Panama to finish top, with Harry Kane becoming England's all-time leading World Cup scorer.
For Croatia, the victory was a measure of redemption after a 4-2 opening loss to England left the team bottom of the group. Back-to-back wins over Panama and Ghana turned the campaign around.
What's next: Portugal
Croatia advances to the Round of 32, where it will face Portugal on Thursday, July 2, at 7 p.m. ET at Toronto Stadium in Toronto — a heavyweight knockout tie between two veteran-laden sides. It pits captain Luka Modrić against Portugal's own veteran talisman in what is likely a final World Cup stage for several of the tournament's most decorated players.
Should Croatia get through, a place in the Round of 16 would await against the winner of Spain–Austria, the Round of 32 tie played earlier the same day at 3 p.m. ET.
What the matchup means for Alexandria is, for now, an open question. The team returned to its base camp overnight, but the Toronto venue means Croatia will travel north for the match rather than drive, as it did for last weekend's game in Philadelphia. The team had said early in its stay that it expected to be based in Alexandria only through the group stage, traveling onward once the knockout round was set — consistent with the tournament's structure, under which teams relocate to the city of their next match. Whether Croatia trains in Alexandria again before heading to Toronto remains to be seen.
For at least another day, though, a World Cup team that has spent nearly a month in Alexandria — and just booked its place in the last 32 — remains in the city.
