Portugal
- Portugal won 3 of their last 5 matches, drawing the other two.
- Portugal head into the FIFA World Cup knockout phase looking an extremely difficult team to beat, and they've got Roberto Martínez to thank for that.
- The Spaniard has overseen a steady, all-round improvement to the national team since taking the helm on January 9th 2023, as evident by their unbeaten run of 5 games ahead of Thursday's encounter (W3, D2).
- The 2026 FIFA World Cup Group K has seen them thrash Uzbekistan 5-0 at home before keeping Colombia out with a 0-0 away draw.
Croatia
- Croatia are on a two-match winning streak, beating Panama and Ghana.
- Zlatko Dalić has been in charge of Croatia since October 7th, 2017, and his tournament nous is still very much their secret weapon in Canada.
- His side have played with a high level of structure in their opening two games in Group L 2026, beating Panama 1-0 away from home before turning it up a notch to see off Ghana 2-1 at home.
- Croatia are simply a different animal, playing a 4-3-3 with a selective press, they're not as direct as Portugal but they'll keep it tight in the midfield and control the tempo of the game.
Head-to-Head
A year on from their 1-1 draw in UEFA Nations League A Group 1 2024/2025, these two sides are meeting again in the knockout phase of the FIFA World Cup.
Betting Insights
- Portugal's recent run of 5 wins, 4 draws and 1 loss is a testament to their all-round quality, but they've conceded just six goals across their 6 home games in all competitions and they know how to keep it cagey when they need to.
- Portugal to win at 1.85 looks too short, while the draw at 3.2 and Croatia at 4.0 make more appeal.
Prediction
- Croatia average 1.80 goals per away game in all competitions, scoring 9 goals on the road, so there's a real danger of this turning into a chess match between Portugal's vertical creativity and Croatia's tight, risk-managed structure.
- Given the history between these two, the 1-1 draw in UEFA Nations League A, Group 1 2024/2025 looks like the smart move in the correct score market.
