2018 World Cup Group Stage Rundown: Group D
A Brief Overview of Group D
One of the more exciting groups of the 2018 World Cup, the drama and intensity of the group was seen all the way to the group finale.
Croatia topped the group after dominant performances in their three games. Argentina qualified by the skin of their necks, after a dramatic late minute goal against Nigeria in a 2-1 victory.
Nigeria finished in third following their loss against Argentina and Iceland, despite impressive displays in their World Cup debut.
Croatia, a dark horse in this World Cup, have many recognizable talents: Luka Modric, Ivan Rakitic, Mario Mandzukic, Ivan Perisic, and Danijel Subasic.
With players like these, Croatia were favorites to exit the group stage... and they did as group winners.
They dominated against Nigeria and Argentina, 2-0 and 3-0 respectively, and qualified for the round of 16.
Iceland gave them a challenge but Perisic scored a stoppage-time goal in a 2-1 win to assure Croatia won all three group stage games.
Lionel Messi celebrates with Marcos Rojo after he scored a decisive header against Nigeria that barely put them through to the next round. (Image via DNA India)
Imagine the frenzy had Argentina made an early exit. And it almost happened.
Barely qualifying for the tournament thanks to Lionel Messi’s hat-trick heroics against Ecuador, Argentina’s Road to Russia was not smooth.
A month before the World Cup was to kick off, veteran goalkeeper Sergio Romero was ruled out of the tournament because of a knee injury.
Then days before the opening match, West Ham winger Manuel Lanzini also suffered a knee injury.
Then there were issues within the team itself. Lack of team chemistry, confidence, and focus. Not the position to be in when preparing for a World Cup.
And those negative factors took their toll on the South Americans. A Kun Aguero goal against Iceland was a dream start for Argentina, only for the Vikings to respond with a goal of their own minutes later.
Argentina were given an opportunity to get ahead with a penalty kick, but Iceland goalie Hannes Halldorsson spoiled the party by blocking Messi’s penalty. The game ended in a draw. A positive result for Iceland. Not so positive for Argentina.
They needed a result against Croatia and they got the exact opposite. In a disastrous night to forget, Messi failed to make his mark, only registering one shot the entire game. An incredible mistake from Willy Caballero gifted Ante Rebic to open up the scoring for Croatia. Modric’s amazing effort from outside the box shut down the South Americans and a 90th minute goal from Rakitic was a cherry on top for Croatia.
Luckily for them, they were not eliminated thanks to a brace from Ahmed Musa in Nigeria’s ruthless 2-0 win against Iceland.
Nigeria did Argentina the favor of keeping them in the tournament. Yet, this is the World Cup and every team is out to get the prestigious trophy. So if Argentina wanted any chance of winning, they needed nothing less than a win against Nigeria and hope that Iceland draw or lose against the Croatians.
It was a dramatic end to Group D but Argentina sealed the 2-1 victory. Messi scored the opening goal, finally making his mark in Russia but Rojo was Argentina’s hero against Nigeria after his stoppage-time header secured gave them a win.
Croatia’s late 2-1 win against Iceland eliminated them and Nigeria.
Argentina barely survived the group stage but they are through. This may very well be Messi’s last chance to acquire the one trophy he hasn’t won. They’ll need serious improvement, both in the locker room and on the field, if they want to have any chance of advancing.
John Obi Mikel pointing out mistakes to teammates in Nigeria’s 2-1 loss to Argentina. (Image via Independent)
Nigeria will always be an African favorite at the World Cup. Their speed, youth, flair, and aggressiveness is adored by fans worldwide.
They grew an even bigger following this year with their wild and eccentric home jerseys, being sold out after an astonishing three million jerseys were pre-ordered.
Their opening match less than impressive, falling to Croatia 2-0 after an own goal and a Luka Modric penalty.
However, they showed true might against Iceland. Iceland struggled to contain the speedy flair of the Western Africans, allowing Ahmed Musa to put two past Halldorsson and right earn three points in the group.
Following Argentina’s nightmare loss against Croatia, Nigeria was sitting in second place of Group D. All Nigeria needed was a draw against a desperate Messi and Argentina to advance to the Round of 16 for a second consecutive World Cup.
Though Messi put one in for Argentina and left Nigeria trailing behind, they were awarded a penalty and equalized.
The Nigerians could taste victory, as the end was slowly approaching. Yet, one moment of lost focus was all it took for Argentina to get ahead in the final seconds, crushing numerous Nigerian hearts.
It may not be their best performance at a World Cup but no one will forget the efforts of the African team in Russia, nor will they forget the incredible jerseys.
Dejected Iceland players following elimination against Croatia in a 2-1 defeat. (Image via Hindustan Times)
A fairytale story cut short.
Iceland, one of two World Cup debutants in Russia, put on shows each game, letting the whole world know why they deserved to play at the biggest international stage.
Iceland’s story began back in late 2015 and early 2016, when they were putting up amazing results against big nations like the Netherlands, the United States, Denmark, and Greece. They earned a spot in the 2016 Euros and drew with eventual champions, Portugal, in the group stage. They made big international news after knocking out European giants, England, in the Round of 16 and introduced to the world the now famous “Viking Clap.” They were knocked out by France in the quarter-finals but the Vikings had left their mark in Europe.
The small nation with an approximate population of 335,000 qualified for their first ever World Cup in 2017 and again, they did not disappoint on the big stage.
In their debut, they held 2014 runner-ups, Argentina, to a draw with strong defensive efforts.
Nigeria proved too great a foe for the Icelandic nationals, their efforts crashing down after Musa’s brace.
Yet, they still had a chance to pull off a miracle in the group finale against Croatia. They put up quite the match against the Croatians, but sadly, it was not enough to keep them alive in the tournament.
However, they will have the support of each and every Icelandic citizen, who now see their football team as national heroes.
Croatia hopes to repeat the same success they saw 20 years ago, going head-to-head with an in-form and stubborn Denmark side. They played on Sunday at 2:00 PM.
Argentina kicked off knockout stage play against another tournament favorite, France, on Saturday at 10 AM.
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