Flashes of brilliance! Bursts of energy! They’re things you’ll find in other games, and there were a few in this one. But there were no goals, and that produced a largely unsatisfying 90 minutes of soccer, and a 0-0 draw. There was little to get your heart racing.
Croatia, one of the tournament’s more veteran squads, began the game looking more old than experienced. They began to wake up in the final minutes of the first half and looked slightly more alive in the second, but none of their chances were particularly frightening, despite holding possession for 65 percent of the time.
Morocco had more sparks of danger, but the Croatian goalkeeper had little to fear. Achraf Hakimi uncorked a powerful strike on a free kick, briefly looking like it could be dangerous, but it flew straight to the goalkeeper and the sheet remained clean.