Croatia kept their FIFA World Cup hopes alive with a hard-fought 1-0 victory over Panama on Tuesday, thanks to a second-half goal from Ante Budimir.
Budimir scored in the 54th minute, just four minutes after coming on as a substitute. Josip Stanišic delivered a curling cross into the box and Budimir was perfectly placed to guide the ball into an empty net.
The win keeps Croatia in the hunt for a place in the knockout stage ahead of their final Group L match against Ghana on Saturday. Panama, meanwhile, were eliminated from the tournament and remain without a World Cup point across their two appearances.
After a quiet first half at BMO Field, Croatia stepped up after the break and found the breakthrough through Budimir.
The 2018 runners-up nearly doubled their lead moments later. Veteran midfielder Luka Modric , making his 200th appearance for Croatia, released Marco Pašalic with a fine pass on the counterattack. However, Panama goalkeeper Orlando Mosquera produced an important save to deny Pašalic.
Panama pushed hard for an equaliser and came closest in the 67th minute. Croatia goalkeeper Dominik Livakovic came to his side's rescue with three outstanding saves in quick succession, including a fingertip stop that pushed the ball over the crossbar.
The battle for qualification from Group L will go down to the final round of matches. England and Ghana are level on four points, while Croatia sit on three.
On Saturday, England will face Panama in East Rutherford, while Croatia take on Ghana in Philadelphia with a place in the knockout stage on the line.
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