Panama were eliminated from World Cup contention after Croatia kept their hopes of progressing to the last 32 alive with a hard-fought 1-0 win on Tuesday.
Croatia, who made it to the last four of the 2018 and 2022 tournaments, were looking to bounce back after their opening Group L match, a 4-2 defeat to England in Dallas.
In the end, Ante Budimir’s 54th-minute goal proved enough to see off the spirited Central Americans.
Croatia’s most celebrated player, Luka Modrić, was making his 200th international appearance, but his early headed effort on goal sailed over the bar.
Under Danish-born coach Thomas Christiansen, Panama have implemented a tight defensive structure that helped them secure their second-ever World Cup appearance.
But it was the Panamanian offence that almost made the difference in the first half.
In the 23rd minute, José Luis Rodríguez guided a header towards goal but the outstretched fingertips of Croatian goalkeeper Dominik Livaković redirected the ball off the bar.
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The second half marked a clear momentum shift, and the capacity crowd of 43,000 in Toronto, with a strong Croatian majority, erupted when Budimir tapped in a cross from Josip Stanišić.
Croatia should have been two up minutes later, when a perfectly weighted pass from Modrić sent Marco Pašalić alone speeding towards goal.
Pašalić’s first effort was stopped by goalkeeper Orlando Mosquera and, although the rebound came back to him, he blazed an off-balance second attempt well over the bar.
Panama kept pressing for the equaliser but they ultimately failed to find the net, extending their World Cup goalless streak.
They face England in what will be their final match of the tournament on Friday.
Croatia have three points and will face Ghana, who moved onto four points after holding England to a goalless draw earlier, for a place in the final 32.
(FRANCE 24 with AFP)
This story originally appeared on France24
