Japan 1-1 Croatia (1-3 on pens): Player ratings as shootout hero Livakovic sends Croatia through
Croatia earned a spot in the 2022 World Cup quarter finals with a penalty shootout win against Japan.
Daizen Maeda's opener was cancelled out by an Ivan Perisic header, but the two teams ultimately couldn't be separated in 120 minutes of football.
Dominik Livakovic was Croatia's hero, saving three penalties in the shootout as only Takuma Asano converted for Japan before Mario Pasalic's winner.
The question was always going to be whether or not an ageing Croatian team could cope with the energy of Japan. The early signs suggested they were going to struggle.
In fact, Croatia got a huge let off in just the third minute of the game. Shogo Taniguchi found himself with a free header just six yards out, but he was only able to glance his header wide.
Croatia seemed rattled by that scare and Perisic bullied his way past Takehiro Tomiyasu down the right-hand side. He lacked support, though, and his narrow-angled shot was easily blocked by Shuichi Gonda.
The half belonged to Japan, though. Maeda just failed to connect with a tantalizing cross from the right, while Daichi Kamada somehow gave away a throw in as he failed to finish off a quality Japanese move.
They finally got the reward their first-half performance deserved, though. A short corner routine ended up dropping to Maeda's feet six yards out and he gratefully accepted the gift.
Presumably aware that they were about to go out with a whimper, Croatia were a different team after the break. The energy was higher and the desire started to match that of the Japanese.
The started the half brightly and got their reward when Perisic headed a brilliant Dejan Lovren cross into the bottom corner.
Japan tried to respond immediately, and Wataru Endo saw his long-range shot tipped over by Livakovic. It was not enough to stem the Croatian tide, though.
They kept coming and Luka Modric saw an attempt well saved by Gonda before substitute Ante Budimir headed horribly wide when unmarked and just six yards out.
As the second half wore on, Japan's energy levels dropped and Croatia's experience started to tell. Neither side could find a winner, though, so it was off to extra time for the first time at the 2022 World Cup.
Both teams struggled to create in extra time as trying to win quickly came attempting not to lose. Kaoru Mitoma looked a real threat and forced another save from Livakovic. Slowly, though, the game fizzled out towards a penalty shootout.
If anyone was expecting any penalty shootout drama, Japan had other ideas. They missed their first two with Takumi Minamino and Mitoma producing tame efforts that were easily saved Livakovic.
They were hoping for some Croatian generosity, but it never came and Pasalic stroked home the decisive kick to win the shootout 3-1. Croatia will face the winners of the tie between Brazil and South Korea in the quarter finals.
Japan player ratings (3-4-3)
GK: Shuichi Gonda - 6/10 - Was there when Japan needed him. Not sure he made any saves you'd not have expected him to though.
CB: Takehiro Tomiyasu - 6/10 - Dispossessed by Perisic in the first half and was fortunate not to be punished. Fine otherwise, though.
CB: Maya Yoshida - 7/10 - Solid performance from the experienced schemer.
CB: Shogo Taniguchi - 7/10 - Missed a great chance to score in the third minute, but good defensively.
RM: Hiroki Ito - 7/10 - Delivery so delicious at times that it wouldn't be out of place on a desert trolley.
CM: Wataru Endo - 7/10 - Very busy and combative. Essential contribution.
CM: Hidemasa Morita - 6/10 - Did okay but not among the best Japan performers.
LM: Yuto Nagatomo - 6/10 - Tireless down the left-hand side in the first half.
RM: Ritsu Doan - 7/10 - Brilliant cross for Maeda's goal.
ST: Daizen Maeda - 7/10 - Another workhorse performance, but this time with a product.
LM: Daichi Kamada - 7/10 - Total nuisance throughout. Surprise when he was withdrawn.
Substitutes
SUB: Takuma Asano (64' for Maeda) - 5/10 - Lots of running, little in terms of product.
SUB: Kaoru Mitoma (64' for Nagamoto) - 7/10 - Real bright spark, especially as the game wore on.
SUB: Hiroki Sakai (75' for Kamada) - 5/10 - Perhaps made Japan more secure, but Kamada was far more effective. Strange sub.
SUB: Takumi Minamino (87' for Doan) - N/A
SUB: Ao Tanaka (105' for Morita) - N/A
Manager
Manager: Hajime Moriyasu - 6/10 - Used his substitutions incredibly during the tournament, but couldn't find the magic here. Lovely suit, though.
Croatia player ratings (4-3-3)
GK: Dominik Livakovic - 7/10 - Did nothing wrong but didn't do much to help either. Penalty shootout hero but he didn't have to do much for that.
RB: Josip Juranovic - 6/10 - Tough task to match the energy of the Japanese wide players but he slowly got to grips with it.
CB: Dejan Lovren - 7/10 - Outmanoeuvred by Maeda far too often in the first half, but improved afterwards and great assist for Perisic's goal.
CB: Josko Gvardiol - 5/10 - Inexperience definitely showed, but he'll be better for it.
LB: Borna Barisic 5/10 - Nowhere near the level of the player, Sosa, that he replaced.
CM: Luka Modric - 6/10 - Tried to make things happen, but it didn't.
CM: Marcelo Brozovic - 6/10 - Entirely ineffectual in the first half. Better after the break, but not really by much.
CM: Mateo Kovacic - 6/10 - Struggled to assert himself against the energy of the Japanese midfield early on but his influence slowly grew.
RF: Andrej Kramaric - 3/10 - Didn't seem to have any real desire, which was odd.
ST: Bruno Petkovic - 3/10 - Didn't offer the kind of physicality that was needed.
LF: Ivan Perisic - 7/10 - The best of the Croatian front three, but that didn't really say much.
Substitutes
SUB: Ante Budimir (62' for Petkovic) - 2/10 - Came on, missed a huge change, went off. Awful.
SUB: Mario Pasalic (68' for Kramaric) - 3/10 - Had about as much of an impact as Kramaric did, but he did score the winning penalty.
SUB: Lovro Majer (99' for Modric) - N/A
SUB: Nikola Vlasic (99' for Kovacic) - N/A
SUB: Marko Livaja (105' for Budimir) - N/A
SUB: Mislav Orsic (105' for Perisic) - N/A
Manager
Manager: Zlatko Dalic - 6/10 - Made some big and gutsy decisions with his substitutions and clearly got a reaction from his players at half time.