- Croatia have 2 wins and 3 defeats in their last 5 games (all competitions).
- Ghana have failed to win their last 4 away matches (1 draw, 3 defeats).
- Croatia have controlled possession and play well when the tempo is right but have suffered defensively against top opponents.
Ghana will make Croatia earn their win
Cristiano Ronaldo may be the story of the World Cup in 2026 but Saturday's meeting of Croatia and Ghana at Philadelphia Stadium will not feature the Al Nassr star and will pit two pragmatic coaches against each other.
Zlatko Dalic has been in charge of Croatia and is an astute tactician with an excellent midfield and some veteran leadership qualities.
Carlos Queiroz has recently taken charge of Ghana and his teams are usually pragmatic and very well organised at the back with the ability to cause problems on the counter-attack and from set pieces.
This should be a very interesting tactical game and the 'Under 2.5 goals' market is favoured at 79/100. Croatia likes to dominate possession and control the tempo, but Ghana will look to transition into their attacking shape quickly and cause some nerve-shredding moments for the favourites.
Black Stars can make a game of it
Croatia are 4th in FIFA World Cup, Group L 2026 with no points after their opening defeat, while Ghana are 2nd on 3 points after edging Panama 1-0 at home.
The Black Stars opened their campaign with a solid 1-1 draw against Wales in a friendly, which was played in Wales, and then managed to keep Panama at bay in the opener.
Croatia lost 4-2 to England in their opening game, which was not a huge surprise given the talent of the Three Lions. They beat Slovenia 2-1 at home prior to the World Cup and were beaten 0-2 by Belgium in a home friendly.
Croatia are clear favourites at 31/50 and Ghana are at 24/5, which may be a bit generous for the Black Stars given their poor away record.
Martin Baturina leads the scoring for Croatia in the World Cup with 1 goal in 1 appearance and can cause problems with his runs from midfield while Ivan Perisic, who has 1 assist in the tournament, is an influential creative midfielder.
Caleb Yirenkyi is Ghana's main goal threat with 1 World Cup goal and 2 in his last 5 appearances. Brandon Thomas-Asante has been a real threat from wide areas for them with 1 assist in this competition.
Queiroz's Ghana will be very compact and can make it hard for Dalic's team, but Croatia have enough to edge this one.
