Croatia Bounce Back With Emphatic Win To Knock Canada Out Of World Cup

Croatia bounced back from their opening stalemate in fine fashion as they cruised to a 4-1 win against Canada to send their opponents packing from the tournament.

Andrej Kramaric scored a brace to inspire the victory that sends Zlatko Dalic's side to the top of Group F with 4 points, level with Morocco, who stunned Belgium earlier on.

After a barren draw against Morocco in their opening game, Croatia needed to win to keep their qualification hopes alive but were undone very early in the game.

Bayern Munich star Alphonso Davies gave Canada the lead with just 64 seconds on the clock, the quickest goal at the Qatar 2022 FIFA World Cup.

The goal was also Canada's first ever goal at a World Cup tournament and that was the only historic moment for them throughout the game.

Croatia, though, did not panic after falling behind and created numerous chances, with striker Andrej Kramaric seeing a goal ruled out for offside.

But the former Leicester City striker equalized with a first-time shot from Ivan Perisic's pass, and Marko Livaja made it 2-1 with a rasping drive from the edge of the box.

Hoffenheim's Kramaric got his second of the game by coolly converting into the far corner after a brilliant first touch, and substitute Lovro Majer wrapped up the match by netting in injury time.

The defeat leaves Canada at the bottom of the table without a point and their final game against Morocco will not matter much to them as they are already out of the tournament.

The two favorites in the group Belgium and Croatia will battle it out in the final group game on Thursday, with the loser almost certain of being knocked out as well.

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