Croatia vs England Nations League match: Match Prediction

TheSportsRush brings Croatia vs England Nations League match prediction, as the two teams clash for the first time since the World Cup semifinal this year.

England and Croatia will meet for the first time on October 12, since Gareth Southgate’s side saw their World Cup dream coming to an end with a 2-1 defeat. Kieran Tripper scored for England in the fifth minute of the semifinal clash, but Ivan Perisic equalized in the 68th minute.

Croatian forward Mario Mandzukic sealed the place in the World Cup final for Croatia in 109th minute to end England’s dream run in the World Cup.

Both the sides will face-off in Croatia’s Stadion HNK Rijeka this week. The match will be played behind closed doors due to a stadium-ban on home fans.

As Croatia and England lock horns, let’s take a look at prediction and odds for the match:

Croatia vs England Nations League match: Match Prediction

The Croatian side, which boasts of a star-studded lineup including Modric, Perisic, Rakitic and Mandzukic, were humbled by La Roja last month. Croatia suffered a heavy 6-0 defeat in their first match of the Nations League to Spain, after playing a 1-1 draw against Portugal in a friendly.

This was Croatia’s heaviest defeat in their football history – the previous one being a 5-1 loss to England at Wembley in 2009. Croatia will look to make a strong comeback from a heavy setback against England in the Nations League game this week.

Dejan Lovren in back in the side, while the FIFA Best Player of the Year Luka Modric and Ivan Rakitic will command the match from the midfield.

England, too, were unable to overcome Luis Enrique’s side in their Nations League match. Marcus Rashford gave Southgate’s men an early lead, but it was soon canceled out with goals from Saul and Rodrigo.

This week, however, Gareth Southgate decided to put his faith on the young guns. Three English players have received their debut call-up – Jadon Sancho, James Madison and Mason Mount. Sancho has impressed the boss with his heroics at Borussia Dortmund – The German side is currently at the top of Bundesliga.

Prediction:

The odds for the match are justifiably even. Bet365 offers 9/5 on England’s or Croatia’s win, while 11/5 on a draw. Most of the odds on England’s win are in the region of 7/4, which include Skybet, Ladbrokes, William Bill and Marathon Bet.

The odds on Croatia win are in the region of 17/10.

The odds are almost double on a draw, with highest being 11/5 from bet365, William Hill and BetWay.

Given England’s youthful squad (Luke Shaw has opted out from national duty for this international break) and Croatia’s recent outings, we predict a 1-1 draw.