MUNDIAL·26

First Stage · Group L · Tuesday, June 23 · Toronto Stadium, Toronto · 43,036 in the stands

kickoff 19:00 local · 22°C · 46% humidity

Panama

0:1

Croatia

54′ Ante BUDIMIR (pen)

tap a player for their match file

Panama5-4-1
Croatia4-2-3-1
Orlando MOSQUERA6.2Cesar BLACKMAN6.1Jose CORDOBA6.6Jiovany RAMOS6.4Carlos HARVEY6.5Andres ANDRADE6.7Amir MURILLO6.8Cristian MARTINEZ6.3Jose Luis RODRIGUEZ6.1Edgar Yoel BARCENAS6.5Jose FAJARDO6.1Dominik LIVAKOVIC7.2Josip STANISIC8.0Marin PONGRACIC6.7Josko GVARDIOL6.6Josip SUTALO7.1Mateo KOVACIC6.6Luka MODRIC7.1Martin BATURINA7.0Ivan PERISIC7.0Marco PASALIC6.5Petar MUSA6.5
from the bench

match pulse — xG per 5 minutes · goals · cards

45′90′PANCRO

goals — hover the strip for every shot and card, with names

  • 54′Budimir0.80 xG
PAN 0:0 CRO0'kickoff
2' Modric — xG 0.02 · Missed4' Murillo — xG 0.05 · Blocked45 + 1' Baturina — xG 0.03 · Missed54' Budimir — xG 0.80 · Goal57' Pasalic — xG 0.51 · Saved57' Pasalic — xG 0.48 · Missed60' Fajardo — xG 0.20 · Missed68' Murillo — xG 0.03 · Saved68' Harvey — xG 0.15 · Missed78' Rodriguez — xG 0.05 · Missed79' Harvey — xG 0.02 · Missed82' Sucic — xG 0.05 · Blocked84' Waterman — xG 0.02 · Blocked90 + 3' Murillo — xG 0.05 · Missed

▶ Watch every shot in 3D⟲ Replay the match

The xG race — cumulative expected goals, minute by minute

PAN 0:0 CRO
1.02.00′15′30′45′60′75′90′54' Budimir — GOAL0.571.89

On paper vs as played — formation sheet vs heatmap reality

PAN 5-4-1 attack →, ← CRO 4-2-3-1 attack. The teamsheet, as announced.

22Orlando MOSQUERAOrlando MOSQUERA2Cesar BLACKMANCesar BLACKMAN3Jose CORDOBAJose CORDOBA13Jiovany RAMOSJiovany RAMOS14Carlos HARVEYCarlos HARVEY16Andres ANDRADEAndres ANDRADE23Amir MURILLOAmir MURILLO6Cristian MARTINEZCristian MARTINEZ7Jose Luis RODRIGUEZJose Luis RODRIGUEZ11Edgar Yoel BARCENASEdgar Yoel BARCENAS17Jose FAJARDOJose FAJARDO1Dominik LIVAKOVICDominik LIVAKOVIC2Josip STANISICJosip STANISIC3Marin PONGRACICMarin PONGRACIC4Josko GVARDIOLJosko GVARDIOL6Josip SUTALOJosip SUTALO8Mateo KOVACICMateo KOVACIC10Luka MODRICLuka MODRIC16Martin BATURINAMartin BATURINA14Ivan PERISICIvan PERISIC24Marco PASALICMarco PASALIC26Petar MUSAPetar MUSA

The duel — team data, FIFA tracking included

37%
Possession
52%
0.69
Expected goals
0.94
44
Threat
56
8
Shots
6
1
On target
2
282
Passes completed
445
44
Forced turnovers
47
16.9s
Ball recovery time
13.2s
3.56
High-press phases
4.9
12
Fouls committed
17
1
Offsides
2
108 km
Distance covered
110 km
34.1 km/h
Top speed
33.7 km/h

Territory — where each team lived

Every player's heatmap, minutes-weighted and stacked per team. Panama attack →, ← Croatia attack. Brighter is more presence; where the colors meet is the contested ground.

How it happened

  1. ′Before the second half begins Ante BUDIMIR (in) comes off the bench to replace Petar MUSA (out) (Croatia)
  2. ′Before the second half begins Andrej KRAMARIC (in) comes off the bench to replace Josko GVARDIOL (out) (Croatia)
  3. 54′Ante BUDIMIR (Croatia) scores!!
  4. 61′Edgar Yoel BARCENAS (Panama) is booked by the referee.
  5. 72′Petar SUCIC (in) comes off the bench to replace Mateo KOVACIC (out) (Croatia)
  6. 72′Luka SUCIC (in) comes off the bench to replace Marco PASALIC (out) (Croatia)
  7. 77′Cecilio WATERMAN (in) comes off the bench to replace Jiovany RAMOS (out) (Panama)
  8. 81′Mario PASALIC (in) comes off the bench to replace Luka MODRIC (out) (Croatia)
  9. 83′Azarias LONDONO (in) comes off the bench to replace Jose FAJARDO (out) (Panama)
  10. 90′Eric DAVIS (in) comes off the bench to replace Cesar BLACKMAN (out) (Panama)
  11. 90′Tomas RODRIGUEZ (in) comes off the bench to replace Edgar Yoel BARCENAS (out) (Panama)
  12. 90+2′Petar SUCIC (Croatia) is booked by the referee.

The morning-after column · AI-written from the match data

Croatia's Clinical Strike Sinks Panama in Toronto

Panama came to Toronto bristling defensively—a five-four-one formation that invited Croatia to break them down. And break them down they did, controlling 52 per cent possession with a relentless high press. The visitors' superior ball recovery (13.2 seconds to Panama's 16.9) told the tale: they were sharper, more organised, more likely to transition possession into threat. The turning point came in the 54th minute, when a clinical finish burst Panama's resistance and set the template for an increasingly comfortable evening.

Croatia's 0.94 expected goals betokened not dominance but sloppiness in the final third. They took their most clear-cut chance—a 0.80 xG shot in the 54th—and converted ruthlessly. Then came the panic: successive opportunities of 0.51 and 0.48 xG arrived at 57 minutes (one saved, one missed). Panama, suffocated by a disciplined five-four-one, never got close enough: their 0.69 xG came from eight shots, only one on target. The Croats' recovery time advantage proved decisive in a match that should have been more comfortable than the scoreline suggested.

One 0.80 xG chance: all Croatia needed to beat Panama, whose eight shots (one on target) mustered just 0.69 expected goals.

54′

Fifty-fourth minute: Croatia's ruthless 0.80 xG conversion punctures Panama's defensive shape and shifts momentum irreversibly.

What Panama needed

Defensive discipline could not mask attacking impotence.

  • Eight shots, one on target: conversion rate (0.69 xG) reveals wide finishing and poor shot selection.
  • Recovery time lag (16.9s vs Croatia's 13.2s) meant perpetual defensive reset and lost transition moments.
  • Big chances squandered: 0.20 and 0.15 xG misses at 60 and 68 minutes cost them any realistic path back.

What Croatia needed

Clinical in the moment; profligate soon after; survived sloppy finishing.

  • Converted 0.80 xG chance in 54th: one clear-cut opportunity decided it against a defensive setup.
  • Wasted 0.51 and 0.48 xG at 57 minutes; against elite opposition, such profligacy would have proven catastrophic.
  • Ball recovery dominance (13.2s vs 16.9s) and high-press intensity (4.9 phases vs 3.6) controlled tempo without threat.