Croatia vs. Brazil Prediction: 2022 World Cup Quarterfinal Odds

Daniel Coyle
December 7, 2022

Runners up at the 2018 World Cup, Croatia booked their ticket to the quarter-finals with a hard fought win on penalties over Japan. Brazil overcame a rash of injuries to tally a 4-1 win over South Korea in Monday’s round of 16 action, and now get set to make an eighth straight appearance in the World Cup quarter-finals.,

In the wake of Monday’s dominating victory, Brazil have emerged as heavy -345 favourites in Friday’s date with the Blazers, who trail as lengthy +718 underdogs. The odds of Friday’s contest ending in a draw after 90 minutes are pegged at +443 while -142 odds favour the total going OVER 2.5.

Croatia vs. Brazil Quarterfinal Betting

Brazil -291
Draw +420
Croatia +710

Friday morning’s matchup at Education City Stadium marks the third time these two national teams have faced off at the World Cup. Brazil emerged victorious in each of those group stage clashes, tallying a 1-0 win in 2006 and a 3-1 win in 2014. Overall, Brazil are unbeaten in four all-time dates with Croatia across all competitions, and have outscored the Blazers by a 6-1 overall margin over their past three tilts. Brazil’s 4-1 win over Korea Republic also extends what has been a steady high-scoring run for the squad in non-friendly play. The Brazilians have outscored opponents by a wide 19-2 margin over their past seven non-friendlies scoring four goals on four occasions over that stretch. Croatia have emerged as a defensive force during their current 7-3-0 win-draw-loss run, keeping clean sheets on five occasions, and have seen the total top 2.5 just three times over that stretch.

Check out all our World Cup betting options.

Croatia

Croatia were pushed to the limit by a Japanese squad that seized the early lead, and forced the Blazers to embark on a second-half rally to forced extra time and penalties. While Croatia ultimately emerged triumphant on the strength of Dominik Livaković’s outstanding play during the shootout, concerns linger about this team’s inconsistent offensive production of late. Apart from their 4-1 demolition of Canada in group stage action, goals have been scarce for the Blazers, who have scored just two total goals in the other four matches over a five-match stretch since the beginning of November. Despite the squad’s uneven performance, Ivan Perisic has remained productive. The veteran midfielder potted the crucial tying goal in Monday’s win, and also leads the squad with two assists so far at the tournament. Conversely, midfielder Luka Modric has yet to contribute at this tournament, and the defending World Cup Golden Ball winner enters Friday action with no goals in his past five appearances with the Blazers.

Brazil

The absence of three key players and concerns about the fitness of veterans Neymar Jr. and Danilo failed to slow down Brazil in Monday’s victory over South Korea. Humbled in a 1-0 loss to Cameroon in their group stage finale, the Brazilians stormed out of the gate against South Korea, taking just 13 minutes to seize a 2-0 lead from which the Koreans simply could not recover. Neymar showed no ill effects from the ankle injury that sidelined him for two of the squad’s three group stage contests. The Paris Saint-Germain star set up Vinícius Júnior’s goal to open the scoring in the seventh minute, and potted his first marker of the tournament on a penalty six minutes later, which marks his seventh goal in his past nine appearances with the national team. Richarlison continues to lead the team with three goals after finding the back of the net, and enters the quarter-finals trailing only France’s Kylian Mbappe as a +403 bet to claim Golden Boot honours as the tournament’s top goalscorer. Brazil’s offensive outburst is welcome. However, this team has produced mixed results against European opponents at the World Cup, going 3-1-3 over their past seven while getting outscored by a wide 13-8 margin.