Overview
Croatia and Ghana will enter the final match of Group L of the 2026 World Cup with the goal of winning a ticket to the 1/16 round, while competing for the top spot in the group.
After a 2-4 defeat to England in the opening match, Croatia managed to return with a 1-0 victory over Panama thanks to Ante Budimir's goal. This result helped Zlatko Dalic's team get 3 points, just 1 point behind England and Ghana before the decisive match.
At the age of 34 years and 336 days, Budimir became the oldest player to score for Croatia at the World Cup, surpassing Ivica Olic's record set in 2014.
Meanwhile, captain Luka Modric continues to make his mark with his 21st appearance at the World Cup. Since debuting at the tournament in 2006, only Lionel Messi (28 matches) and Cristiano Ronaldo (24 matches) have had more appearances than this 40-year-old midfielder.
If they both start against Ghana, Modric and Ivan Perisic will become the first Croatian players to reach the milestone of 20 starts at the World Cup.
Despite defeating Panama, Croatia did not create an overwhelming game when they only launched 6 shots, including 2 shots on target - both of which are their lowest statistics in a World Cup victory.
On the other side, Ghana is in very stable form. After a 1-0 victory over Panama, the African representative drew 0-0 with England to rise to 4 points and share the top spot in Group L with the "Three Lions".
If they get a better result than England in the final match, Ghana will finish the group stage in first place, thereby owning a more favorable bracket in the knockout round.
Ghana's defense is a solid support. Marvin Senaya made 7 tackles against England - the most in the history of a Ghana player in a World Cup match, while goalkeeper Benjamin Asare only had to make 3 saves.
In the opposite direction, despite launching 19 shots, England was still powerless against Ghana's defense. This is the most shots that the "Three Lions" have not been able to score in a World Cup match since 2002.
Caleb Yirenkyi continued to impress when playing fully despite receiving a yellow card very early, while Jordan Ayew performed up to 71 high-intensity pressure plays - a achievement in the highest group at the 2026 World Cup.
Croatia is almost certain to advance if they win, while Ghana only needs a draw to get a ticket to the round of 32. However, the African team is still aiming for 3 points to avoid the risk of facing Portugal right in the knockout round.
Head-to-head record
This will be the first time Croatia and Ghana have faced each other in history, and also the first time the two teams have met at the World Cup.
Ghana, currently ranked 65th in the FIFA rankings, will become the second lowest-ranked team to ever face Croatia at the World Cup, only after Russia (ranked 70th) in 2018.
Croatia has never lost to a team outside the top 40 FIFA at the World Cup. Besides, the European team is also unbeaten in all 4 encounters with African representatives at the tournament, with a record of 3 wins, 1 draw, 8 goals scored and only 1 conceded.
Score prediction: Croatia 1-1 Ghana
The match between Croatia and Ghana takes place at 4:00 AM on June 28 (Vietnam time).
