Croatia played a poor first half against Panama, but managed to turn things around after the break and win 1-0.
It wasn’t the most lively affair at BMO Field. Panama (7) and Croatia (6) combined for just 13 shot attempts overall, which is the joint-fewest in any game in the 2026 World Cup so far, alongside Tunisia vs Japan.
The first half in particular was a tough watch. There were two shots in the opening three minutes and just one in the final 45. Panama once again, just like vs. Ghana, impressed – but ultimately failed to hold on at the back or get it done up front.
And Croatia did just enough in the second half to get by and keep their hopes of advancing alive.
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How did Zlatko Dalic’s changes improve Croatia against Panama?
Wide dynamics
Croatia lined up in a 4-2-3-1 – a change from the 3-4-2-1 they used to start against England. Zlatko Dalic wanted one extra man further forward to attack a Panama side that retracted in an organised 5-4-1 mid-to-low block. Sometimes it even turned into a 6-3-1, which made the Blazers’ life more difficult.
They always tried to have at least three players overloading the flanks. Wingers Ivan Perisic and Marco Pasalic were joined by full-backs Josko Gvardiol and Josip Stanisic plus Martin Baturina sometimes roaming around.
The problem is that the Blazers severely lacked all kinds of movement. Wingers drifting inside, striker running in behind, full-backs overlapping, you name it. As a result, the ball kept finding its way back to the central corridor.
Numbers, graphics and charts suggest they were trying to penetrate down the middle, when in reality they were just passing it around and their centre-midfielders and centre-backs were trying to find space with Panama not conceding any.
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Before we mention substitutions, Dalic made tactical changes to their approach during the break. Suddenly, the second half started and you could see full-backs bombing forward with speed and momentum.
Of course, Perisic as left-back gave them more presence in the attacking half and the final third down that side. On the other, it was precisely a deep run from Stanisic that got him in position to assist Budimir. Unironically, the cross was his most advanced touch of the whole match.
For once it felt like they were finally challenging Panama’s defensive line and ‘asking questions’ rather than just passing it backwards if gaps didn’t suddenly appear out of thin air, like the first 45 minutes.
Front-line changes
Starting striker Petar Musa was a complete non-factor during his 45 minutes on the pitch. He tried to get on the end of a few over-the-top through balls from Luka Modric and Mateo Kovacic, but none worked. And that was basically all Croatia could do in the first half.
Luckily, Dalic recognised those issues and changed things at half-time. A like-for-like replacement was the most impactful substitution, as Ante Budimir scored shortly after coming on for Musa in the striker position.
But former Leicester City forward Andrej Kramaric had a pivotal role in making things more dynamic for the Blazers, despite having done little with the ball. He is a second striker that thrives dropping deep and moving around. This helped drag a few Panamenian defenders with him as they chased their man closely for long distances.
It added a few layers to Croatia’s attacks, with one forward dropping deep and the other (Budimir) looking to infiltrate.
Out of possession, Kramaric also didn’t play ‘locked’ as one of the strikers ahead of two four-man lines. He would often drop deep and turn their 4-4-2 into a 4-5-1 or even 4-1-4-1 with Modric sweeping things in between at times.
This helped lower Panama’s momentum and add bodies to the midfield, crowding the centre of the pitch and making things difficult for their opponent.
Still, despite the Canaleros being officially eliminated from contention after back-to-back defeats, they deserve a few paragraphs. For the second straight game, they played stronger opponents than them and still managed to have the more exciting sequences in the match.
It was like that against Ghana and once again today facing Croatia. The Amir Murillo-Cristian Martinez combinations down the right-hand side have been extremely fun despite nothing ultimately coming out of them.
Thomas Christiansen has them playing some nice football and their performances have been much better than it would look like for those who just pay attention to results and standings.
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