Croatia will once again look to surprise on the biggest stage when they open up their World Cup participation on Wednesday against Morocco. Both teams are in Group F with Belgium and Canada, and the Croatians are favorites to go through along with the Red Devils. The golden era of the Croatia national team may not be what it was four years ago, but Luka Modric is still there to command the middle as they aim to return to the final.
WATCH WORLD CUP 2022 LIVE STREAM
This page contains affiliate links. When you subscribe through the links provided, we may earn a commission.
Here’s our storylines, how you can watch the match and more:
How to watch and odds
- Date: Wednesday, Nov. 23 | Time: 5 a.m. ET
- Location: Al Bayt Stadium — Al-Khor, Qatar
- TV: FS1 and Telemundo | Live stream: fuboTV (Try for free)
- Odds: Morocco +375; Draw +215; Croatia -114 (via Caesars Sportsbook)
The Atlas Lions have Belgium next and would love to have a point or three in their pockets before what it hopes will be a meaningful group finale against Canada.
For Croatia, it’s knowing that Belgium is last and that a win over the underdogs from North Africa will help it come closer to sealing its spot in the knockout rounds before looking at the favored Red Devils.
WATCH WORLD CUP 2022 LIVE STREAM
Morocco quick facts
Current FIFA world ranking: 22
World Cup titles: 0
World Cup appearances: 6
How they qualified: Qualified automatically from CAF
Coach: Vahid Halilhodzic
Key players: Achraf Hakimi, Yassine Bounou, Youssef En-Nesyri, Romain Saiss
Croatia quick facts
Current FIFA world ranking: 12
World Cup titles: 0
World Cup appearances: 6
How they qualified: Qualified automatically from UEFA (1st place)
Coach: Zlatko Dalic
Key players: Luka Modric, Andrej Kramaric, Mateo Kovacic
Storylines
Croatia: A team that has a huge mix of veterans over the age of 30 and young pups looking to make some noise. The pair of Domagoj Vida and Dejan Lovren — both 33-year-olds — lead the defense, while five of the defenders are under the age of 24, including highly-rated RB Leipzig man Joska Gvardiol. Luka Modric commands the middle, Marcelo Brozovic and Matto Kovacic figure to join him, and up top they need to find a guy to replace Mario Mandzukic. Bruno Petkovic of Dinamo Zagreb is one to watch.
Morocco: An interesting team with some undoubtedly fine talent but more questions than answers. In goal, Bono is reliable and can change a game. Achraf Hakimi has elite speed and ability, but where else will they get production? Sofyan Amrabat shows flashes, but he hasn’t been overly convincing for the national team. Hakim Ziyech has not been in form at Chelsea, but he will be relied on heavily to combine with Youssef En-Nesyri in attack. If a guy like Hakimi can fine that form he showed at Ajax, then Morocco can make noise.