CROATIA WIN CRAZY SHOOTOUT
Schmeichel saves three penalties . . . and he’s still on his way home!
Go al keeper s were on top — to the delight of peter schmeichel who was on his feet to roar his approval at the heroics of son kasper.
perhaps the schmeichels sensed revenge for euro 96, when Big pete was made to look a bit silly by a chip from Croatia’s Davor suker as Denmark lost their grip on the european title.
schmeichel Jnr saved three penalties in total, one from luka Modric four minutes from the end of extra time and two more in the shootout which followed.
But his brilliance was matched by Danijel subasic, who made three penalty saves and gave Ivan rakitic the chance to send Croatia into a World Cup quarter-final against hosts russia in sochi.
rakitic obliged, which was something of a surprise because the standard of the penalty taking until then had been so low.
subasic was dropped when his team-mates threw him in the air in celebration, but is said to be ‘fine’.
‘kasper did everything,’ said Denmark boss age Hareide. ‘our best three penalty-takers missed and I am so sorry for kasper and the whole team. It’s the brutality of football.’
schmeichel said: ‘It’s a strange feeling. a huge disappointment but also huge pride. I don’t feel let down. anybody who is brave enough to stand up and take a penalty is a hero in my book. With the pressure they’re under, if you have the b***s to take that, you have my respect.
‘We win and lose as a team. I’m proud to be part of it and we’ll be back. We’ll use this in the future.’
This was a tie littered with mistakes and defined by four minutes of chaos at the start of the game and another brief, chaotic spell at the end.
Croatia’s victory did at least deliver a sense of justice, aside from the emotion of the schmeichel narrative.
There were 116 minutes on the clock when luka Modric put ante rebic clear. rebic skipped around schmeichel and was about to roll the ball into an open goal when Mathias Jorgensen scythed him down from behind.
Modric took the penalty and schmeichel saved, diving to his left, as Jorgensen escaped with a yellow card and Denmark made it into the penalty shootout.
Modric, to his credit, had the bottle to step forward and take another, Croatia’s third, in the shootout. This time he scored, subasic saved the next two from Denmark and rakitic won the tie which had started with two untidy goals inside the first four minutes.
The game was only 57 seconds old when Croatia slipped behind having failed to defend a long throw from Ipswich defender Jonas knudsen.
Thomas Delaney helped it to the back post where Jorgensen became the first Huddersfield player to score at a World Cup. subasic threw down his left hand but was only able to divert the ball under his body, against a post and into the net.
The lead was wiped out within three minutes after a charge down the right from rebic. sime Vrsaljko toe-punted a low cross into the box from the right and the Danes self-destructed when an attempt to clear by Henrik Dalsgaard smacked team- mate andreas Christensen full in the face.
Chelsea centre half Christensen, deployed by the Danes as a deep midfielder, collapsed in a heap and was forced off at half-time, still feeling the effects of the impact.
The rebound spilled to Mario Mandzukic, who swept the bouncing ball past schmeichel on the turn. a pattern of sorts was set. Denmark were most threatening from set-pieces and Croatia were dangerous on the flanks but often lacked composure. schmeichel saved from rakitic and Ivan perisic snatched at a chance. Dejan lovren then ought to have hit the target with a header.
Danish opportunities were more fleeting. subasic smothered one at the feet of Martin Braithwaite and eriksen clipped the frame of the goal.
Denmark neutralised the Croatian wingers after the break and the midfield areas became congested. Modric and rakitic found it increasingly difficult to dictate the pattern and the tie drifted towards the late flurry.
Victorious manager Zlatko Dalic said: ‘We stayed mentally strong and composed and we won. after Modric’s missed penalty, we all harked back to Vienna when we lost to Turkey in 2008. ‘You have to earn your luck. Without luck you can’t do anything in life. I never had anything on a platter but through hard work and it feels even better.’