Croatia draws with Portugal and qualifies for the quarter-finals of the Nations League

Posted on by

Gvardiol’s goal guarantees the Croatians’ place in second place in Group 1; Portuguese team is first in the bracket

Croatia draws with Portugal and qualifies for the quarter-finals of the Nations League

Summary

Croatia is qualified for the quarter-finals of the UEFA Nations League. This Monday, the Balkans team drew 1-1 with Portugal, at home, a result enough to guarantee second place in Group 1 – the Portuguese team had already secured first place and spared starters, such as Cristiano Ronaldo, Bruno Fernandes and Bernardo Silva. João Félix opened the scoring in the first half, and defender Joko Gvardiol scored the goal in the final stage that decided Croatia’s classification, as in the other group game Scotland beat Poland 2-1.

DRAW ON FRIDAY

UEFA will draw the Nations League quarter-finals on Friday, with games to be played on the next FIFA date in March 2025. The teams that finished first in their groups (Portugal, France, Germany and Spain) will play the second knockout game at home. The second-placed teams: Croatia, Italy, the Netherlands and Denmark will be drawn in the other pot. Two teams from the same group cannot face each other in the quarter-finals.

GOAL AVOIDS ALMOST TOTAL TIE

Portugal finished the Nations League with 14 points, compared to Croatia’s eight, Scotland’s seven, which will play a relegation playoff, and Poland’s four. Gvardiol’s goal in the 20th minute of the second half prevented Croatia and Scotland from being tied for second place. Had the match ended 1-0 to Portugal, Croatia and Scotland would have been level on points and on the first seven tiebreakers. Scotland would have come out on top in the eighth (most away wins), thanks to their win in Poland on Monday.