Euro 2024 Qualification: Wales Vs Croatia, Important Battle At Cardiff
Wales will face the Euro 2024 qualifying match which will have to win in Croatia at the Cardiff City Stadium on Sunday, October 15 or October 16 in the morning WIB. With only two matches remaining in the qualifying campaign after this weekend, the defeat will be a tough blow to the team handled by Rob Page.
Currently, Turkey leads Group D with 13 points, followed by Croatia with 10 points, while Armenia and Wales each have 7 points.
Wales and Croatia have played one game less than others, stressing the importance of this live match this Sunday.
Wales appeared with the advantage of their last away game without Gareth Bale, Wales being the weaker team. The national team's iconic player has retired after the 2022 World Cup, where his performance is not at the peak of his performance.
Wales has gone through a campaign mixed without it. Two wins, one draw, and two defeats make their chances of qualifying for the European Cup uncertain. However, Page has more insurance. They can get a playoff spot if they are outside the top two of Group D.
Direct qualification would certainly be a better choice, but Wales still have to work hard even if they beat Croatia this weekend.
After a 1-1 draw in Split in the first game, Page believes that his team can once again avoid losing to the 2022 World Cup semifinalist, especially with support from spectators at Cardiff.
Croatia have just lost 1-0 at home to Turkey in their last game, so they are not in the best form at the moment, and Wales are able to get good results.
Goals may be difficult to find this Sunday as Wales scored four goals against Gibraltar in a friendly on Wednesday 11 October, but they will find it difficult to penetrate Croatian defense at Cardiff City Stadium.
Wales have just scored six goals in five qualifying games, with three goals against Latvia at the bottom.
Both of Kieffer Moore's goals against Gibraltar should be enough to keep him in the center forward position, which means Wales will try to take a cross into the box and the ball is off.
Likewise with Croatia which is not yet very productive in Group D. No team in this group has an average goal per game better than their 1.8. However, five of Croatia's nine goals were scored in a big win against Latvia.
The first meeting between the two teams ended with two goals, and the second match could be a low score match in this match.
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Croatia will rely on Bruno Petkovic although most likely he won't play from the early minutes. Instead Petar Musa was chosen as the main striker against Turkey and he will likely get another chance when he meets Wales.
The Benfica forward just made his senior debut in March when Croatia drew 1-1 with Wales. He has yet to score for his country but has scored four goals in 10 appearances for Benfica this season.
With players like Luka Modric, Mateo Kovacic, and Marcelo Brozovic who will be the mainstay in midfield, Musa can get a chance to score this weekend.
Wales have recorded two clean sheets in Group D, but both have been awarded in a match against Latvia which is not a strong opponent. If Musa is in good form, they may not get another clean sheet in this match.