Jeremy Perry
June 18, 2018

2018 World Cup Betting Predictions: Argentina vs. Croatia Odds

The page turns to Matchday 2 for both teams as they prepare to meet on Tuesday for a key clash in Group D. For Argentina, they are going to need a win unless they want to start getting into tiebreaker math. Croatia has a full three points and if Argentina can only draw a point here, they are going to be facing a lot of pressure in their Matchday 3 against Nigeria.

World Cup 2018: Argentina vs. Croatia Betting Analysis

Croatia will not take anything for granted in the World Cup after qualifying through a playoff after finishing as a runner-up in Group I. Meanwhile, Argentina needed some heroics from Lionel Messi just to qualify for the World Cup as the third-best team from South America behind Brazil and Uruguay. They will need Messi to shine over the course of the final two group stage games if they are going to make some noise in Russia.

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Argentina

Messi had his opportunity to put Argentina ahead of Iceland with a penalty kick on Saturday. However, he was stonewalled by Iceland goalkeeper Hannes Halldorsson and Argentina never found the back of the net again. While a 1-1 draw isn’t a terrible result for the South American side, it definitely ramps up the urgency heading into what appears to be their toughest matchup in Group D. The Barcelona star will be relied on to produce up front. While he didn’t find the back of the net in the opener, he did create several chances versus an Iceland side that did a good job defending.

Sergio Aguero provided the lone goal for Argentina in the draw and will also be needed to step up at the attacking end of the pitch. This team has the talent up front to do some damage but must capitalize on its opportunities moving forward to be successful. They were fairly good in two-thirds of the field. They lacked a bit of quality in terms of finishing.

Meanwhile, Argentina could be in for a much tougher challenge at the defensive end of the pitch in this contest. Croatia has far more skill in the midfield and going forward. Their defense could get exposed if they’re not careful.

Croatia

Croatia never once looked at risk of conceding points to Nigeria in its opener. While they did benefit from a penalty kick goal and an own goal, they didn’t really concede many opportunities. Nigeria didn’t get their first shot on target until the 59^th minute.

The key against Argentina will be finding the back of the net during live play, which is actually something they weren’t able to do in their opener against Nigeria. Argentina is a much more dangerous team with the football, so possession will not come as easily in this matchup. They had 53% of the share in Matchday 1 and will need to push for an even split in this one to challenge for a win.

Argentina’s defense and back line hasn’t really been tested yet. Croatia has the talent to contend with the South American side and will need players like Luka Modric and Mario Mandzukic to showcase their world class skill sets. This will be an excellent opportunity for Croatia to cement its status atop Group D with a win or even a draw.