The 2018 FIFA World Cup semifinals are now set, as Croatia won a thriller against host nation Russia to book their place in Moscow on Wednesday night.
Croatia fell behind 1-0 on a great goal by Denis Cheryshev, only for Ivan Perisic to level things up. Just when it looked as if Domagoj Vida’s header would prove to be the winner in extra time, Mario Fernandes, a Brazilian who was granted Russian citizenship in 2016, scored a dramatic equalizer to force a penalty shootout. Unlike the previous round, Russia was unable to duplicate their 100% success rate from the spot, and Croatia knocked them out 4-3 to advance to their first major tournament semifinal since the 1998 FIFA World Cup.