Croatia and England were not considered outsiders to even win this World Cup yet one of them are on the brink of reaching the finals and there is a real chance that the winner of this semifinal might be the winner of the competition. Croatia beat Nigeria, Argentina and Iceland in their group game to set up a round of 16 game against Denmark. They needed penalties to beat the Danes and Ivan Rakitic scored the final spot kick that helped them qualify for the quarterfinals. They met Russia in the quarterfinals and needed penalties to knock the hosts out after they had played a dramatic 2-2 draw by the end of extra time. Ivan Rakitic stepped up to score the winning penalty again to set up this match, it would be interesting to see if they would need penalties to reach the finals again. England have played some of the best football in this competition and they are the highest scorers from set pieces as they head into this game. The Three Lions won their first two group games against Tunisia and Panama before losing to Belgium in their final group game. They beat Colombia on penalties in the round of 16, but did not need extra time in their quarterfinal game against Sweden. They beat the Swedes 2-0 to set up this clash and they have raised up hopes in the hearts of every Briton that this could be their year, they can win this.

France is perhaps the only remaining big team in this World Cup after Brazil was eliminated by Belgium in the quarterfinals and Les Blues would be eager to avoid an upset and also reach the final at the expense of Belgium here. This French side is blessed with attacking talents and their defence has also been impressive in this competition. The French men started their campaign by winning two and drawing one group game before they met Argentina in their Round of 16 game. They beat the Argentines 4-3 to set up a quarterfinal match against a previously unbeaten Uruguay, and they won the game 2-0 to set up this clash. With the likes of Kylian Mbappe, Ousmane Dembele and Antoine Greizmann spearheading their attack, the question seems to be whether their defence can stop Belgium. Belgium have maintained a 100% in this competition till this semifinal. The Red Devils beat Panama, Tunisia, and England in the group stage, before eliminating Japan in the round of 16. They faced Brazil next and Roberto Martinez pulled off a tactical masterstroke. The Belgians used their pace and the strength of Romelu Lukaku to batter their Brazilian defence, ending the game 2-1 winners to set up this match. The Red Devils seem fearless and they can beat this French team if their defence can hold tight.

Russia are the surprised team still left in this competition even though the entire competition is full of surprises. The host nation are the lowest ranked team in this competition yet they are in the quarterfinals while the likes of Spain and Portugal have already been sent home. They started their campaign with 5-0 bashing of Saudi Arabia before winning Egypt 3-1 in their next group game. Their last group game ended in a 3-0 loss for them against Uruguay to pair them with Spain in the round of 16. They beat the Spaniards on penalty after the regular time and extra time had failed to produce a winner. The Russians would be hoping to emulate South Korea at the 2002 World Cup by reaching the semifinals here as the host nation. Croatia were not considered one of the favourites to win this World Cup when the draws were made, but after two group games it became apparent that they could be up to something special. They beat Nigeria 2-0 in their opening group game before beating Argentine 3-0 in their next match to confirm their qualification to the next round. In their round of 16 game against Denmark, they went a goal down very early but responded superbly by equalizing almost immediately, but the two teams could not find a winner until penalties when Ivan Rakitic tucked in his penalty to win the game for the Croats. They come up against not just the Russian starting eleven in this game but against the entire nation and it would interesting to see how they perform.