{"id":2934,"date":"2016-03-02T11:58:37","date_gmt":"2016-03-02T06:28:37","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/13.201.39.237\/?p=2934"},"modified":"2016-03-02T11:58:37","modified_gmt":"2016-03-02T06:28:37","slug":"croatia-england-fifa-world-cup","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"http:\/\/13.207.105.184\/?p=2934","title":{"rendered":"Croatia: The Kings of Extra Time"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

A<\/span>couple of hours after World No 8 Kevin Anderson defeated defending champion and top-seeded Roger Federer for the first time and led to his ouster from Wimbledon 2018, \u00a0an underdog history was underway in <\/p>Russia<\/span><\/a>. <\/span>\n\nIn a terse, decisive semi-final, Croatia met <\/span>England<\/span><\/a> to fight for a spot in the World Cup final \u2014 a fight that was as much for glory, as it was for redemption. Both teams came into the match with burdens of historical letdowns. Twenty years ago, Croatia had been defeated by France (the very team they set to face in the final) in the semi-finals. And it was only the third semi-final for England in 68 years, with the team yet to win the World Cup since the glorious summer of 1966, making a habit instead of going home from the knockout stages. <\/span>\n\nFor the next long-drawn 120 minutes, both teams fervently battled it out \u2014 withstanding tired legs and pushing the limits of human endurance \u2014 until it became clear that the Cup <\/span>wasn\u2019t coming home<\/span><\/a> after all.<\/span>\n\nIt was in the 109th minute of extra time that the fate of Gareth Southgate\u2019s men was sealed: Ivan Perisic\u2019s header set in motion a chain of events that led to Mario Mandzukic ensuring that the ball was in the net (despite his damaged knee) and that Croatia were 2-1 up. The goal came when England had switched off for all but a split second, yet the damage was already done. <\/span>\n\nBarring France, all the legacy teams will have now bitten the dust:<\/span> Germany<\/span><\/a>, <\/span>Argentina<\/span><\/a>, Brazil, Spain, Portugal, and now England.<\/span>\n\nOnly when the final whistle blew after two sets of extra-time and Croatia\u2019s remarkable win was confirmed, was it possible to acknowledge the sheer extent of their achievement. With their win, Croatia became the smallest country to enter the World Cup finals since Uruguay\u2019s win in 1950. It\u2019s also the first time the country made it to a World Cup final. The bittersweet moment comes a full 27 years after its independence.<\/span>\n\nAs the match showed, what separated Croatia from England was a bit more experience: Mandzukic has played three Champion League finals, Modric four, and Loren, and Rakitic one each. And, a whole lot of persistence. <\/span>\n\nIt\u2019s a trait that has been inherent to the Croatian team from the very start of this World Cup. Their route to the finals was as scenic as it was impossibly hard: Croatia defeated Argentina, Nigeria, and Iceland in their group to finish first. The team withstood three consecutive extra times to emerge victorious: Before their compelling win against England, there were extra-time and penalties against Denmark and Russia. In the match against England, they kept their wits even when pain and fatigue sullied their bodies, to come back into the game after being 1-0 down, despite it being the third straight game where they conceded first. <\/span>\n\nMore than anything, in what has been touted as the World Cup of the underdogs, Croatia\u2019s semi-final win will go down in history as the ultimate proof. A reminder that the reigns of this fluctuating game rests only with those who never give up. It\u2019s a testament to Croatia\u2019s undying resilience, impossible persistence, and thorough domination. It\u2019s the beauty and democratisation of <\/span>football<\/span><\/a> that makes it conceivable that a nation with barely 4.1 million could very well lift the World Cup. <\/span>\n\nOh also, look at yet another bright side: A semi-final that didn\u2019t need to depend on penalties.<\/span>\n\n\u00a0\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Last night, Croatia scripted history with a compelling semi-final win over England, becoming a World Cup finalist for the first time and proving that their undying resilience and impossible persistence could make them the Ultimate Underdog of this World Cup.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":30,"featured_media":2935,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[394],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-2934","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-sports"],"yoast_head":"\nCroatia: The Kings of Extra Time<\/title>\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"Last night, Croatia scripted history with a compelling semi-final win over England, becoming a World Cup finalist for the first time and proving that their undying resilience and impossible persistence could make them the Ultimate Underdog of this World Cup.\" \/>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, 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