Welcome along to today's Qatar 2022 World Cup fixture wherein Argentina and Croatia face off in semi-finals at the Lusail Iconic Stadium, in the city of Lusail. The referee for this match is Daniele Orsato (ITA). The two assistant referees will be Ciro Carbone (ITA) and Alessandro Giallatini (ITA), and the VAR official is Massimiliano Irrati (ITA).
Argentina vs Croatia: Follow the World Cup match live on December 13
Argentina 3-0 Croatia
Croatia had no answer for Argentina and Messi with the PSG star inspiring his side to, what ended up being a comfortable win in the end. Julian Alvarez got the brace for Argentina but the headlines will go to Messi with his move for the third capping off a superb individual display.
Match ends, Argentina 3, Croatia 0.
Second Half ends, Argentina 3, Croatia 0.
Attempt missed. Dejan Lovren (Croatia) left footed shot from outside the box is too high. Assisted by Mislav Orsic.
Attempt missed. Nikola Vlasic (Croatia) left footed shot from the right side of the box is high and wide to the left. Assisted by Mateo Kovacic.
Corner, Croatia. Conceded by Nicolás Tagliafico.
Mateo Kovacic (Croatia) wins a free kick in the defensive half.
Foul by Exequiel Palacios (Argentina).
Foul by Lovro Majer (Croatia).
Ángel Correa (Argentina) wins a free kick on the left wing.
Attempt saved. Lovro Majer (Croatia) left footed shot from outside the box is saved in the bottom right corner. Assisted by Mateo Kovacic.
Dejan Lovren (Croatia) wins a free kick in the defensive half.
Foul by Paulo Dybala (Argentina).
Substitution, Argentina. Juan Foyth replaces Nahuel Molina.
Substitution, Argentina. Ángel Correa replaces Alexis Mac Allister.
Corner, Croatia. Conceded by Nicolás Tagliafico.
Attempt missed. Alexis Mac Allister (Argentina) right footed shot from the centre of the box.
Foul by Marko Livaja (Croatia).
Exequiel Palacios (Argentina) wins a free kick in the attacking half.
Substitution, Croatia. Lovro Majer replaces Luka Modric.
Attempt missed. Mislav Orsic (Croatia) right footed shot from the left side of the box.
Alan Shearer on BBC Radio 5 Live: "Absolutely sensational from Lionel Messi. We talked about his ability to go past defenders. He picks his head up in such a tight situation. The understanding and the relationship that he has with Alvarez. Thank you very much, have a tap in. For all the work he has done, he deserves that. What a goal. I am lost for words. So many times you see different players get into that position and not make that pass. He puts it on a plate for Alvarez who stick it away perfectly."
Attempt missed. Ivan Perisic (Croatia) left footed shot from more than 35 yards.
Substitution, Argentina. Paulo Dybala replaces Julián Álvarez.
Substitution, Argentina. Exequiel Palacios replaces Rodrigo De Paul.
Nikola Vlasic (Croatia) wins a free kick in the defensive half.
Attempt saved. Ivan Perisic (Croatia) left footed shot from outside the box is saved in the bottom right corner.
Substitution, Croatia. Marko Livaja replaces Andrej Kramaric.
Rob Green on BBC Radio 5 Live: "It's all in front of Argentina from Croatia, there's no running in behind. No defenders are having to turn their heads, they're not asking any different questions. They've still not had a shot on target."
Nicolás Otamendi (Argentina) is shown the yellow card.
Bruno Petkovic (Croatia) wins a free kick in the attacking half.
Foul by Nicolás Otamendi (Argentina).
Goal! Argentina 3, Croatia 0. Julián Álvarez (Argentina) right footed shot from the centre of the box.
Cristian Romero (Argentina) is shown the yellow card for a bad foul.
Bruno Petkovic (Croatia) wins a free kick in the defensive half.
Foul by Cristian Romero (Argentina).
Foul by Mislav Orsic (Croatia).
Rodrigo De Paul (Argentina) wins a free kick in the defensive half.
Luka Modric (Croatia) wins a free kick in the defensive half.
Nikola Vlasic (Croatia) wins a free kick in the defensive half.
Foul by Lionel Messi (Argentina).
Foul by Josip Juranovic (Croatia).
Alexis Mac Allister (Argentina) wins a free kick on the left wing.
Substitution, Argentina. Lisandro Martínez replaces Leandro Paredes.
Luka Modric (Croatia) wins a free kick on the left wing.
Foul by Leandro Paredes (Argentina).
Finishing touch
For all their possession and good passing, Croatia are lacking incision in the final third.
Attempt blocked. Mislav Orsic (Croatia) right footed shot from outside the box is blocked.
Josko Gvardiol (Croatia) wins a free kick in the defensive half.
Foul by Julián Álvarez (Argentina).
Attempt saved. Lionel Messi (Argentina) left footed shot from the left side of the box is saved in the bottom left corner. Assisted by Enzo Fernández.
Mateo Kovacic (Croatia) wins a free kick in the defensive half.
Foul by Rodrigo De Paul (Argentina).
Substitution, Croatia. Bruno Petkovic replaces Marcelo Brozovic because of an injury.
Nikola Vlasic (Croatia) wins a free kick on the right wing.
Foul by Nicolás Tagliafico (Argentina).
Attempt saved. Leandro Paredes (Argentina) right footed shot from outside the box is saved.
Nikola Vlasic (Croatia) wins a free kick on the right wing.
Foul by Nicolás Otamendi (Argentina).
Second Half begins Argentina 2, Croatia 0.
Substitution, Croatia. Nikola Vlasic replaces Mario Pasalic.
Substitution, Croatia. Mislav Orsic replaces Borna Sosa.
Argentina 2-0 Croatia
After two goals in quick succession, Argentina are in control of the game thanks to Messi and Alvarez. Croatia started well, and controlled possession, but were caught out by Argentina and have it all to do in the second half.
Alan Shearer on BBC Radio 5 Live: "Alvarez has been brilliant, he's been the threat running in behind. We talk about Messi but the way he has played in this first half with his goal and winning the penalty, he has been superb."
First Half ends, Argentina 2, Croatia 0.
Foul by Marcelo Brozovic (Croatia).
Lionel Messi (Argentina) wins a free kick on the right wing.
Offside, Argentina. Nicolás Tagliafico tries a through ball, but Julián Álvarez is caught offside.
Attempt missed. Mario Pasalic (Croatia) right footed shot from the right side of the six yard box is close, but misses to the right.
Attempt blocked. Luka Modric (Croatia) right footed shot from outside the box is blocked. Assisted by Andrej Kramaric.
Corner, Argentina. Conceded by Dominik Livakovic.
Corner, Argentina. Conceded by Josko Gvardiol.
Attempt blocked. Rodrigo De Paul (Argentina) right footed shot from outside the box is blocked. Assisted by Alexis Mac Allister.
Goal! Argentina 2, Croatia 0. Julián Álvarez (Argentina) right footed shot from very close range.
Corner, Croatia. Conceded by Alexis Mac Allister.
Dejan Lovren (Croatia) wins a free kick in the defensive half.
Foul by Julián Álvarez (Argentina).
Alan Shearer on BBC Radio 5 Live: "What a run from Alvarez, he find himself clear. It's wide open for him. He dinks it over the goalkeeper and Livakovic trips him. For me, it was the right decision."
Goal! Argentina 1, Croatia 0. Lionel Messi (Argentina) converts the penalty with a left footed shot.
Mateo Kovacic (Croatia) is shown the yellow card.
Dominik Livakovic (Croatia) is shown the yellow card for a bad foul.
Penalty conceded by Dominik Livakovic (Croatia) after a foul in the penalty area.
Penalty Argentina. Julián Álvarez draws a foul in the penalty area.
Attempt missed. Ivan Perisic (Croatia) right footed shot from the left side of the box is just a bit too high. Assisted by Mateo Kovacic.
Andrej Kramaric (Croatia) wins a free kick in the attacking half.
Attempt saved. Enzo Fernández (Argentina) right footed shot from outside the box is saved in the bottom right corner. Assisted by Alexis Mac Allister.
Mateo Kovacic (Croatia) wins a free kick in the attacking half.
Foul by Cristian Romero (Argentina).
Croatia on top
It's been a good opening 15 minutes from Croatia who are passing the ball around with confidence as they look to wear Argentina down early on. Messi is yet to get into the game.
Attempt missed. Dejan Lovren (Croatia) header from a difficult angle on the left is too high. Assisted by Josip Juranovic with a cross following a corner.
Rob Green on BBC Radio 5 Live: "What Argentina don't have is a large presence up front to hold the ball up so they can dominate when they are in good positions."
Corner, Croatia. Conceded by Nicolás Tagliafico.
Foul by Luka Modric (Croatia).
Alexis Mac Allister (Argentina) wins a free kick in the attacking half.
Nicolás Tagliafico (Argentina) wins a free kick in the defensive half.
First Half begins.
Leandro Paredes and Nicolas Tagliafico come in, replacing Lisandro Martinez and Marcos Acuna for Argentina. Lionel Scaloni has Di Maria and Lautaro Martinez on the bench should Argentina need extra firepower.
Croatia unchanged from the team that beat Brazil to make the semi-finals.
Croatia XI: Livakovic, Juranovic, Lovren, Gvardiol, Sosa, Modric, Brozovic, Kovacic, Pasalic, Perisic, Kramaric.
Argentina XI: Martinez, Tagliafico, Romero, Otamendi, Molina, Paredes, De Paul, Mac Allister, Fernandez, Messi, Alvarez.
Lineups are announced and players are warming up.
Predicted Argentina XI: E. Martinez; Molina, Romero, Otamendi, Li. Martinez, Tagliafico; De Paul, Fernandez, Mac Allister; Messi, La. Martinez
Predicted Croatia XI: Livakovic; Juranovic, Lovren, Gvardiol, Sosa; Modic, Brozovic, Kovacic; Pasalic, Petkovic, Perisic.
On December 13, Argentina and Croatia will face each other to try to reach the final of the Qatar 2022 World Cup. We've got all of the information you need to follow the game.
In which stadium will the World Cup fixture between Argentina and Croatia be played?
The match between Argentina and Croatia will be played at the Lusail Iconic Stadium in the city of Lusail The Lusail Iconic Stadium is one of the eight stadiums hosting 2022 World Cup matches. It has a capacity of 80,000 spectators, which makes it the stadium with the highest capacity during this World Cup. A semifinal and the final of Qatar 2022 will be played in this stadium.
Which players did Argentina call up for the Qatar 2022 World Cup?
For the Qatar 2022 World Cup, Argentina and national team coach, Lionel Scaloni, called up the following players:
- Goalkeepers: Franco Armani, Emiliano Martínez, Gerónimo Rulli
- Defenders: Nahuel Molina, Gonzalo Montiel, Cristian Romero, Germán Pezzella, Nicolás Otamendi, Lisandro Martínez, Marcos Acuña, Nicolás Tagliafico, Juan Foyth
- Midfieldiers: Rodrigo De Paul, Leandro Paredes, Alexis Mac Allister, Guido Rodríguez, Alejandro Papu Gómez, Enzo Fernández, Exequiel Palacios
- Forwards: Ángel Di María, Lautaro Martínez, Julián Álvarez, Ángel Correa, Thiago Almada, Paulo Dybala, Lionel Messi
Which players did Croatia call up for the Qatar 2022 World Cup?
For the Qatar 2022 World Cup, Croatia and national team coach, Zlatko Dalic, called up the following players:
- Goalkeepers: Dominik Livakovic, Ivica Ivusic and Ivo Grbic
- Defenders: Dejan Lovren, Domagoj Vida, Martin Erlic, Borna Barisic, Josip Juranovic, Borna Sosa, Josip Stanisic, Josko Gvardiol, Josip Sutalo
- Midfieldiers: Luka Modric, Mateo Kovacic, Marcelo Brozovic, Mario Pasalic, Nikola Vlasic, Lovro Majer, Kristikan Jakic and Luka Sucic
- Forwards: Ivan Perisic, Andrej Kramaric, Bruno Petkovic, Mislav Orsic, Ante Budimir, Marko Livaja