Croatia vs Ghana

Croatia versus Ghana closes Group L with a fixture that could decide everything — or nothing, depending on results elsewhere. Their only previous meeting, a 2006 friendly, ended 3-0 to Croatia, but that result belongs to a different century of football. Addo's Ghana press with an intensity that Croatia's veteran core may struggle to match, particularly if Modrić's minutes have been managed through the first two matches and his legs are heavier than his mind wants them to be.

The tactical tension here is fascinating: Croatia want to keep the ball, slow the game, dictate tempo; Ghana want to make the pitch big, force turnovers high, and attack before Croatia's shape settles. If Partey can disrupt Croatia's build-up phase and Kudus can isolate Joško Gvardiol one-on-one, Ghana have the speed to punish. But Croatia's tournament craft should not be undersold — they have reached the knockout rounds in every major competition since 2016, often without playing particularly well, because they manage game states with a surgeon's precision.

A Modrić free-kick, a Budimir header from a cross, a penalty won by clever movement in the box: these are the margins on which matches at this level turn. Both teams need to win, which should produce an open contest. That usually favours the side with superior technical quality, but Ghana's athleticism and desperation could tip the balance.

A genuinely unpredictable contest, and perhaps the best match of the group.