The final whistle at Toronto Stadium brought more relief than joy for Croatia. A was not the performance Zlatko Dalic's side had imagined, but it was the result they desperately needed.
After a sobering 4-2 defeat to England in their opener, a defeat would have seen them get eliminated from the ahead of their final group game against Ghana. Instead, three points keep them firmly in control of their own destiny.
The players knew exactly what was at stake. "We suffered," admitted match-winner Ante Budimir to FIFA, who tucked in Josip Stanisic's low cross at the back post in the 54th minute. "We knew Panama is a quick, technically good team, and they were a really tough opponent. In the first half they won a lot of second balls and were able to dominate."
For a side that admits to struggling with confidence having failed to win one of their group matches at UEFA EURO 2024 before being second best against England last week, simply getting over the line carried its own value. "We needed to start from something, and now we start from a victory."
Although the result offered comfort, the performance offered a to-do list. Croatia were second best for long stretches, particularly before the break, and Marin Pongracic was in no mood to gloss over it. "The most important thing is that we won, but of course it matters how we do it," the defender said. "We have big goals, we want to go as far as possible in this tournament, and we know we have to do better."
Asked where the improvement must come, he pointed to the basics. "I had the feeling that we made a lot of technical errors, and we have to improve that. We were good enough not to concede, but we have to avoid dangerous situations and allow them even less into our half and our box." Budimir struck a similar note, but found encouragement in the details that had let Croatia down against England. Set-piece defending held up far better this time. "Today we didn't concede, we stayed concentrated. We had a lot of trouble with corners in the first game, defensively, and today we were a lot better. Those details are important." The challenge now, both agreed, is to carry the hard-won confidence into the decisive meeting with Ghana on Saturday while sharpening their play in possession.
And yet, for all the self-criticism, the night found a fitting ending and one that had nothing to do with tactics. In Toronto, Luka Modric made his 200th appearance for Croatia, joining an exclusive club. "I was asking our team manager who else has done this for their national team," said Pongracic on a night where after Lionel Messi had surpassed Miroslav Klose as the .
"I think it's just Ronaldo, Messi and one other player [Bader Al-Mutawa from Kuwait] who have reached 200. It's a crazy achievement. He's so important to us, a big leader, our captain. We're very grateful to have him."
The squad made sure the milestone did not pass quietly. For the lap of honour, the players pulled on special shirts bearing the words "infinite legacy", before hoisting their captain into the air in celebration. For Budimir, the timing made it all the more meaningful.
"You don't have many players in the world who play more than 200 games for their national team. Seeing the shirt, and knowing it came with such an important victory, made it even more special. I'm happy for him, happy to have him as our captain."
Sources: FIFA Official
