WORLD CUP BETTING PREVIEW - CROATIA VS GHANA

World Cup

2026-06-27 - Croatia vs Ghana

A Sports Betting Preview by Auls

Croatia v Ghana
Football: World Cup Group L Match Day 3
Saturday 27th June 2026 - Kick Off 5pm (EST)
British Time 10pm

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Croatia

After the opening defeat to England, Croatia had to display all of their experience to edge past Panama and earn three priceless point. Playing in one of the last of the Group Stage matches is a bonus for Croatia as they are going to know exactly what is needed to progress to the Last 32 by the time this fixture kicks off.

Three points and a minus one goal difference has placed Croatia amongst the leading third place teams after two rounds of Group Stage action, but the situation could look very different with one or two upsets on Match Day 3. That is not something that should concern Croatia too much, especially as they will be very aware of what they need to do by Saturday afternoon in Philadelphia.

One part of the equation that will not be known at kick off is the value of finishing second or third in this Group with the former facing the team that finishes second in the Group containing Portugal and Colombia and the third place team likely facing the winner. That Group Winner will be decided after Croatia's game against Ghana, but this is a squad that will only be concerned about making sure they have a Last 32 Knock Out tie to play.

A tweak was made to the starting system for the game against Panama following the defeat to England. Manager Zlatko Dalic was not very happy with Croatia's first half performance against Panama, but will have been satisfied that his changes helped turn things around.

Predicted Line Up: Livakovic, Stanisic, Gvardiol, Sutalo, Pongracic, Modric, Kovacic, Marco Pasalic, Perisic, Baturina and Kramaric (4-2-3-1)

Ghana

Manchester United fans will have been reminded of the kind of tactical set up that Carlos Queiroz can put together to stifle teams when watching Ghana contain England in the second Group game in this section. That makes it back to back clean sheets for Ghana, but most important they have earned four points and are almost certainly going to be playing in the Last 32 at the 2026 World Cup Finals.

A very late goal helped Ghana beat Panama in the opener and that is the key result in the Group, although the draw against England is a bonus and will give the squad a lift. There is still a chance that Ghana can finish anywhere between first and third in the Group, but the first ambition of making it through to the Last 32 looks to have been achieved before the final Group fixtures and that is credit to the manager and the players.

If the Knock Out Stage began after the second round robin of Group fixtures, Ghana would be playing Portugal, while England would be playing Cape Verde and so there may be a real ambition to try and finish top of the section. That would likely involve England slipping up against Panama or Ghana producing a very big win in this Group fixture, but Carlos Queiroz has a team that will be playing with some freedom.

Thomas Partey was available for the second game in the Group and came back into the starting eleven, while the manager just made a change to the system to ensure Ghana were that much tougher to break down. Carlos Queiroz could choose to rotate some of his starting eleven with a place in the Last 32 all but assured.

Predicted Line Up: Asare, Senaya, Mensah, Adjetey, Opuku, Partey, Yirenkyi, Owusu, Nuamah, Semenyo and Baba (4-1-4-1)

Head to Head

This is the first meeting between the nations.

Prediction

Both Croatia and Ghana have earned 1-0 wins over Panama and those three points look likely to be enough to take them through to the Last 32.

Ghana added another by earning an upset draw against England, which is almost certainly good enough for a spot in the Last 32, but Croatia may be more interested in results from Groups that will have been completed by the time this fixture is played.

Eight of the twelve third place teams will move through to the Knock Out Stage too and the feeling has been that three points could be enough, although Croatia have a negative goal difference ahead of the final game.

A couple of upsets earlier in the week would leave teams chasing four points to progress and it does feel like Croatia may have some work to do.

They showed more authority than Ghana in the win over Panama, but Croatia also struggled with the first half pace shown by that opponent. It will encourage Ghana, but there is also a feeling that Carlos Queiroz and his squad have already achieved their first ambition and motivation for this fixture may not be as high as it could have been.

With the way things stand, Ghana could be the first team from this Group that is in Last 32 action and that could be an influence in how much motivation they have to come forward.

Croatia have shown they can defend well enough to contain attacks, but this could be another disciplined display from Ghana that will be tough to break down and a boring selection is in the offing.

Neither team is expected to leave massive gaps chasing a win and both have shown enough at the back to believe they can contain the majority of threats. Rainy conditions are expected in Philadelphia, but it is still going to be pretty warm and you can see a situation where this game peters out after the second half hydration break.

With the game state situation within the Group and with little to gain by throwing men forward to chase a winner, a low scoring fixture that suits both Croatia and Ghana could develop. Neither manager will want to see his key players running themselves into the ground with bigger fish to fry and ultimately that could lead to a relatively cautious fixture the longer it goes.

The Pick :

Croatia 1-0 Ghana

FIXED ODDS BETTING :

I'll back Under 2.5 Goals at 1.66 with BetFred