Josip Juranovic will join Celtic teammates Cameron Carter-Vickers and Aaron Mooy in the knockout stages of the World Cup after his Croatia team drew 0-0 with Belgium in a tense group encounter this afternoon.
Juranovic was starting his third match of the tournament on the right side of the Croatian defence, helping his country keep their second clean sheet in three Group F matches.
The result means Croatia will play the winners of Group E which contains Spain, Japan, Costa Rica and Germany – all of whom can still qualify later tonight.
Juranovic undoubtedly had a more accomplished and dynamic 90 minutes in Croatia’s second group match against Canada than he did against the Belgians. It was a tight, nervy fixture with Roberto Martinez’s side only needing a single goal to progress and knock Croatia out. The Celtic defender’s overall performance reflected that – misplaced passes and some panicky decisions were definite issues.
His biggest moment in an attacking sense came just before halftime when he had the opportunity to get a shot on target from the edge of the box, only to slice wide. In other attacking positions he was just as wasteful as Croatia struggled with a final ball across the pitch.
As the clock ticked towards 90 minutes and into stoppage time it was all hands on deck defensively with Croatia making last-ditch tackles and blocks to frustrate Belgium and ultimately send them packing.
He had 71 touches of the ball during the match, completing 81% of his 43 attempted passes, ten of which were into the final third. However, none of his five attempted crosses were accurate, highlighting frustrations further up the pitch. The 27-year-old won his only contested duel, made two blocks and a tackle, as well as seven recoveries, so didn’t shirk his defensive responsibilities. [FotMob/Opta]
Croatia will need to improve as a collective in the knockout stages of the competition, Juranovic included, but they’ll be delighted to have made it. Today was all about grinding out a result against a Belgium side full of talented individuals. It’s a job done in that regard.
Yet another Celtic player can look forward to an extended stay in Qatar. Well done Josip!
In other news, Celtic B stage dramatic late comeback as they return to winning ways.
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