Croatia vs Ghana Preview

Saturday evening at Lincoln Financial Field in Philadelphia serves up a Group L decider with the knockout rounds on the line. Croatia sit third on three points and Ghana second on four — one point separates the two sides going into the final match. England lead the group on four points, while Panama are bottom with nothing. Croatia need a win to leapfrog Ghana and secure second place; Ghana know a draw is enough to go through as group runners-up. Both sides are in the mix, and the occasion demands a full-blooded performance from two competitive nations.

Croatia have had an inconsistent campaign but arrive here on the back of a positive result. Their most recent outing was a 1–0 win away against Panama on 24th June — a professional display that kept their qualification hopes alive going into this decider. Prior to that, they suffered a 4–2 defeat away to England on 17th June in a match that exposed their defensive vulnerabilities at set pieces and on the counter. Earlier in this run, a 2–1 home win over Slovenia on 7th June demonstrated their quality in possession, a 2–0 home defeat to Belgium on 2nd June was a setback, and a 3–1 defeat away in Brazil on 1st April showed the gulf in class against the very top sides. Two wins and three losses across five outings — Croatia are capable but need a clean performance here.

Ghana have shown substance and organisation throughout this group stage. Their most recent outing was a 0–0 draw away against England on 23rd June — a disciplined defensive performance against the group leaders that earned them a precious point. Prior to that, they beat Panama 1–0 at home on 18th June in a composed showing that confirmed their ability to control games. Earlier in this run, a 1–1 draw away in Wales on 2nd June, a 2–0 defeat away in Mexico on 23rd May, and a 2–1 defeat away in Germany on 30th March complete a sequence of one win, two draws and two losses. Ghana’s defensive structure has been a key asset — they have not conceded yet in the group stage — and Croatia will need to find a way past that.

In Group L, England lead on four points with a goal difference of +2. Ghana sit second on four points with a goal difference of +1. Croatia are third on three points with a goal difference of -1 — two points behind Ghana and one behind England. Panama are bottom with no points. Croatia must win here to reach four points; if they do, they go level with Ghana but ahead on goal difference, currently +1 to Croatia’s -1 — so Croatia need to win and improve their goal difference past Ghana’s. A draw sends Ghana through; a Croatia win of any margin most likely sends Croatia through ahead of Ghana on goal difference.

These two nations have never previously met — there is no head-to-head history between Croatia and Ghana.

In the UK, the match is live on ITV 4 and available to stream via ITVX, with radio coverage on Talksport 2 Radio UK and BBC Radio 5 Sports Extra. In Ghana, the game is broadcast across GTV, Metro TV, TV3 Ghana, and several other platforms. In Croatia, audiences can follow on HRT 2, MAXtv To Go, and HRTi. US viewers can catch the action on Fox Sports 1, fuboTV, Telemundo Deportes En Vivo, and UNIVERSO.

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Possible Lineups

Croatia (4-2-3-1) Livakovic, Stanisic, Sutalo, Pongracic, Gvardiol, Modric, Kovacic, Pasalic, Baturina, Perisic, Musa

Ghana (4-3-3) Asare, Mensah, Opoku, Adjetey, Senaya, Sibo, Partey, Semenyo, Ayew, Williams, Yirenkyi

Both sides go into this fixture with full squads available, setting up a straight contest determined entirely by tactics and execution on the night.

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Group L Table

Pos.	Team	MP	W	D	L	GF	GA	GD	P
1	England	2	1	1	0	4	2	+2	4
2	Ghana	2	1	1	0	1	0	+1	4
3	Croatia	2	1	0	1	3	4	-1	3
4	Panama	2	0	0	2	0	2	-2	0

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Croatia Form

Result	Home Team	Score	Away Team	Competition	Date
✅	Panama	0–1	Croatia	World Cup	24-06-26
❌	England	4–2	Croatia	World Cup	17-06-26
✅	Croatia	2–1	Slovenia	Friendly	07-06-26
❌	Croatia	0–2	Belgium	Friendly	02-06-26
❌	Brazil	3–1	Croatia	Friendly	01-04-26

Ghana Form

Result	Home Team	Score	Away Team	Competition	Date
🤝	England	0–0	Ghana	World Cup	23-06-26
✅	Ghana	1–0	Panama	World Cup	18-06-26
🤝	Wales	1–1	Ghana	Friendly	02-06-26
❌	Mexico	2–0	Ghana	Friendly	23-05-26
❌	Germany	2–1	Ghana	Friendly	30-03-26

Head-to-Head

No previous meetings on record between these sides.

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TV Listings / Streaming

Country	Channel
Great Britain	ITV 4, ITVX, Talksport 2 Radio UK, BBC Radio 5 Sports Extra
Ireland Republic	ITV 4, RTE 2, ITVX, RTE Player, BBC Radio 5 Sports Extra
Croatia	HRT 2, MAXtv To Go, HRTi
Ghana	GTV, Metro TV, TV3 Ghana, SuperSport MaXimo 1
USA	Fox Sports 1, fuboTV, Telemundo Deportes En Vivo, UNIVERSO, UNIVERSO NOW
Germany	ZDF, SRF info, MagentaTV
France	beIN Sports 2, beIN SPORTS CONNECT, myCANAL
Australia	SBS On Demand, SBS Viceland
Canada	TSN2, TSN+, RDS 2
Spain	DAZN Spain, DAZN Mundial 2, Movistar+