CROATIA broke Japan hearts to progress through to the World Cup quarter-final after a penalty shoot-out win.
Japan were on top in the first half and got their reward just before the break when Daizen Maeda poked home from close range.
But the runners-up from 2018 would not go down without a fight and battled back after half-time.
Croatia began to dictate play and Ivan Perisic equalised with a brilliant header from Dejan Lovren’s deep cross.
That was enough to send the game into extra-time with a resurgent Japan again producing more goalscoring chances than their opponents.
But neither side could find a winner so the match ended in a penalty shoot-out for the first time at the tournament.
And it was heartbreak for Japan in the penalty shoot-out as Croatia won 3-1.
More to follow…
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