I watched the game once I got home from work and thought that Croatia were hard done by. The penalty decision was very harsh, as was the decision to award a freekick to Brazil when Olic outjumped the goalkeeper fairly. I hate the protection that goalkeepers get - it seems that all they have to do is get near the ball and they either claim it or win a freekick in attempting to.
Croatia deserved something from that game, and I think a draw would've been a fair result all round.
No doubt that Neymar will get the credit for this victory as he put away two goals - one from outside the box that bounced off the post on the way in, and the other from the penalty spot - which Pletikosa, in all fairness, should've saved as he let it find a way through his hands... My man of the match, however, was Oscar. Every time he got hold of the ball he seemed to have it stuck to his feet. There were times when he'd have three defenders around him all hacking at his legs, yet he'd still come out the other side and with the composure to pick off a straightforward pass to a teammate. He deserved his goal, and I thought he was comfortably the best player on the pitch.
Brazil spent the first 20 minutes lumping crosses into the box aiming for Fred, but constantly missing, and that allowed Croatia to hit them on the counter attack. This led to the first goal of the game - and own goal for the all-diving, all-acting left back, Marcelo.
There's no doubt that the Brazilians enjoyed better spells of pressure than the Croatians, but I still think the game deserved to be a draw.
Anyway, moving on - we have three games tonight and here's how I imagine they will go;
Mexico vs Cameroon
Both teams have seen better days, and I can't imagine this will be a great spectacle for the neutrals. Whilst Cameroon still rely on Samuel Eto'o to put the ball in the back of the net, Mexico have a few younger players who can cause issues. I think Mexico might sneak this one, but I doubt it'll be a classic.
Prediction: Mexico 1-0 Cameroon
Spain vs Netherlands
This is the sort of game that people want to see at the World Cup - a repetition of the 2010 final, which Spain won after a rather card-heavy game. Two powerhouses of European football, they may well be a bit tentative early on in the competition and so I imagine it'll be hard to split them.
Prediction: Spain 2-2 Netherlands
Chile vs Australia
Not a game contested by particularly highly ranked teams, yet I think this will only go one way. Australia have not got a particularly good team and I think Chile are far more up for it - not least Alexis Sanchez, who claims he would not have come to the World Cup if he didn't think they had a chance of winning the tournament. Chile will be tough opposition for anybody, and this should be a nice warm up game for them.
Prediction: Chile 3-0 Australia
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