"Croatia makes a substitution in the 55th minute. In response to Argentina's adjustments, Croatia reacts immediately."
"Bilic brings on Mandzukic and Dujmovic, tweaking both the offensive and defensive ends."
The Argentine commentator sounded a bit helpless.
Already trailing, Argentina was now facing a more focused Croatian defense.
Argentina's tactic had been simple—give the ball to Messi. But Messi couldn't possibly break through Croatia's double defensive lines alone, especially when he had been tightly marked since the first whistle.
With such an unbalanced strategy, Argentina's situation deteriorated even further.
In contrast, Croatia's adjustments increased their margin for error and significantly improved their attacking threat in the penalty area.
"Leave the rest to me!"
Mandzukic, energized, reached out his hand.
Suker slapped it forcefully.
"Let's destroy them!"
Throughout the first 50 minutes, Suker had already thrown Argentina's defense into chaos and had expended a lot of energy.
Maradona's pursuit of perfection—trying to win through aggressive offense—had backfired.
Croatia's quick countermeasures left plenty of room for Mandzukic to shine.
As play resumed, Argentina's offense became noticeably more frantic.
That's right—frantic.
They knew a drawn-out battle against Croatia was nearly impossible.
This group of "mules" from Croatia would grind them down!
So, they launched into a more intense offensive.
Forward! Forward!
Keep pushing forward!
"Pass it!"
Higuaín suddenly stepped aside, shielding Srna with his back, lowering his center of gravity to control the ball.
Srna countered with a strong shove.
As Messi fed the ball to Higuaín, Srna suddenly lunged in, sliding a leg through Higuaín's stance and poking the ball away.
It rolled directly to Modric.
"Srna again! Another great steal! Higuaín never gets the better of Srna in one-on-one situations."
Modric turned with the ball and looked up at Mandzukic far upfield. But the distance was too great, and Mandzukic didn't have Suker's individual skill.
So Modric passed the ball to the left-side midfield line.
There, Suker had moved into open space.
"Beautiful!"
Instead of stopping the ball, Suker nudged it forward and burst into a sprint.
Seeing this, Argentina's defender Demichelis quickly dropped back.
With Suker's explosive speed, Demichelis needed to keep some distance.
Suker was thrilled to see the retreat and accelerated into the inside channel.
On the wing, Srna followed up.
"Pass it!"
Srna shouted.
Suker immediately passed him the ball.
Now Demichelis had no choice but to close in on Srna.
Srna then returned the ball to Suker.
Suker received it near the corner of the box and spun around immediately, slipping past the recovering Messi.
Messi wasn't having it and gave chase again.
Suker didn't hold onto the ball and passed it laterally.
Modric made a timely run, feigned a shot, and instead chipped it delicately into the box again.
Mandzukic leaped for it.
Argentine defender Burdisso was barely able to contest it.
Mandzukic hammered a header toward goal.
Bang!"Mandzukic! Headed attempt! This one—"
Smack!Argentine goalkeeper Romero managed a desperate fingertip save, deflecting the ball just wide.
"Romero with a quick reaction to push it out—Croatia gets their fourth corner of the match!"
The Argentine players braced themselves.
"Mark up! Watch your zones!"
Burdisso shouted commands.
He saw Suker, Mandzukic, and Simunic all entering the penalty area.
Croatia had sent in their strongest aerial threats.
"Damn it!"
Burdisso felt a wave of panic.
He couldn't guarantee he'd win the first ball against those three monsters.
Still, he gritted his teeth and prepared to fight.
Bang!Modric sent in the corner with no hesitation.
Suker sprinted to the near post, drawing defenders with him.
Burdisso instinctively stepped forward, then quickly retreated.
"It's not Suker! Middle! Watch the center!"
His experience kicked in—Suker was a decoy.
Indeed, Simunic was charging the middle.
"Mark him!"
Burdisso yelled.
He and Demichelis locked down Simunic.
But just as they prepared to jump, they realized the ball wasn't dropping in the middle—it was sailing long toward the far post.
Burdisso's heart sank. He turned and shouted, "Far post! Watch Mand—"
Before he finished, Mandzukic had already leapt at the far post, completely unmarked.
In perfect form midair, he smashed a header downward.
The ball bounced off the ground and into the near corner of the net.
61st minute, Croatia scored again from a corner kick, extending the lead once more.
Croatia 3:1 Argentina!
"Mario Mandzukic! What a brilliant substitution. Once again, it pays off with a goal for Croatia!"
"Argentina's defense, already battered by Suker in the first half, crumbled under Maradona's all-out attack strategy, which left the backline exposed. This weakness was fully exploited in the corner. The three-back setup left their fragile defense even more vulnerable."
"Croatia's movement was textbook. Suker's run to the near post pulled focus, Simunic disrupted central marking, and Mandzukic finished the job at the far post! A flawless tactical play from Croatia!"
Coach Kranjcevic couldn't stop smiling.
"And with that, Argentina is in deep trouble. Their 2010 World Cup journey may be ending here."
The Argentine commentator's tone turned somber.
"Our tactics were flawed. We focused too much on attack and completely neglected defense. Our style was too idealistic. Maybe we need more time to adjust—but the World Cup won't wait."
"Maybe... this is truly the end for Argentina in this World Cup!"
In the stands, Argentine fans covered their mouths.
They didn't leave.
Their eyes brimmed with tears and sorrow—but also a faint glimmer of hope.
Maybe, just maybe, Maradona or Messi could lead a comeback.
But that hope was extinguished in the 72nd minute.
Another Croatian counterattack—Simunic won the ball and immediately launched a long pass to Suker.
It wasn't well-placed, closer to Argentine defender Demichelis.
But Suker's raw speed closed the gap.
Demichelis hesitated—Suker's momentum intimidated him, and he held back.
In such moments, even slight hesitation spells disaster.
Suker arrived at the ball simultaneously with Demichelis but got a touch first, poking it past him.
Then he accelerated again.
Demichelis tripped and fell trying to recover—completely beaten.
Suker surged into the box. Despite Burdisso's pressure, he sidestepped and curled a shot with his right foot toward the far post.
Whoosh!The ball curled past the keeper's outstretched hands and into the net.
Croatia now led 4:1.
That goal sealed the deal.
Argentina couldn't hope to overturn the score with less than 20 minutes left—and only one substitution remaining.
Suker's goal shattered the last trace of hope in Argentine fans' eyes.
From hopeful waiting to hopeless tears.
From passionate anticipation to pained despair.
No one expected the South American powerhouse, the mighty Pampas Eagles, to fall so far.
But reality was clear—Argentina was leaving the 2010 World Cup.
In the 88th minute, Croatia used their final substitution to take Suker off.
Youngster Lovren made his World Cup debut.
"Go get 'em!"
Suker clapped Lovren hard on the shoulder.
Lovren looked visibly nervous.
Suker gave him a light kick on the backside.
"Don't freeze up—play your game!"
Lovren grinned nervously, took a deep breath, and stepped onto the pitch.
"Suker comes off, signaling Croatia is shifting into full defensive mode—not good news for Argentina. With just minutes left, their hopes are all but gone."
The camera focused on Suker.
He sprawled out on the bench, grinning from ear to ear.
Kranjcevic couldn't help laughing too.
"Suker is clearly happy with his performance. Five goals in three World Cup group matches—he's now leading the Golden Boot race by a mile!"
"Suker brought his top form to the World Cup and showed the world his incredible scoring ability."
"And most impressively, this is his first World Cup!"
"With Suker's brilliance, Croatia is set to win all three group matches and advance to the knockout stage."
Back on the pitch, the game continued.
Argentina launched desperate attacks.
Even though a comeback was impossible, they pushed forward out of professionalism.
But their efforts lacked confidence.
Even they didn't believe they could turn it around.
Time ticked away rapidly.
3 minutes of added time!
Croatia stayed solid at the back, giving Argentina no more chances.
In the final moments, Messi made one last run, beating two players.
Just as he approached the box, Dujmovic and Modric brought him down together.
Dujmovic booted the ball high into the air.
And then—three sharp whistle blasts.
Full-time.
Croatia 4:1 Argentina.
They advanced to the knockout stage with three wins from three matches.
"The group stage is over. We've entered the knockouts with a perfect record. What a thrilling trio of matches—Croatia has shown brilliant football!"
"A debut win over Bosnia, a demolition of Korea, and now the elimination of Argentina!"
"Croatia's young men played with great skill and style!"
"Following Uruguay and Mexico, Croatia becomes the third team to advance to the knockout stage!"
Kranjcevic roared in celebration.
Croatian fans in the stadium were in a frenzy.
Players ran wild on the pitch, hugging each other in joy.
This was their first-ever World Cup—and they had advanced with three wins.
The world had taken notice.
In stark contrast, Argentina's fans left in silence.
Their World Cup dream—and their summer of 2010—was over.
The Argentine commentator, holding back pain, forced out his words:
"It's over. Bosnia beat Korea 1:0 in the other match. We've been eliminated from the group stage. Our World Cup ends here."
"From the beginning, we never found our rhythm. That may have sealed our fate."
"It's a reality we must accept."
"But from this experience, I hope we learn. I hope Argentina bounces back stronger in the next World Cup or Copa America."
"Shed the flashy surface, and return to gritty, solid football."
A long sigh—"It's time to say goodbye to South Africa."
On the pitch, many Argentine players were in tears—Di María, Higuaín among them.
Suker didn't approach Higuaín, but he did walk over to Di María.
They shared a brief hug.
There were no words of comfort—after all, he was the one who scored.
Still, watching Argentina leave in sorrow, Suker felt heavy-hearted.
They arrived to flowers and cheers.
But as they left as losers—not a single camera followed.
Victory or defeat—nothing else mattered.
Inhale... exhale...
Suker took a deep breath.
He quickly composed himself.
Argentina's World Cup had ended.
But Croatia's was just beginning.
The group stage was over.
But the more brutal knockout stage was about to begin.
Over the next few days, the rest of the groups would finish and the Round of 16 would be finalized.
So far, only Uruguay, Mexico, Croatia, and Bosnia had advanced.
More teams would follow soon.
Back on the team bus, things were quiet.
The players were thrilled to advance.
But they were also haunted by the sight of Argentina's departure.
They knew how easily they could have been in that position—three matches and you're done.
The image of Messi walking off, without a single camera focused on him, stayed with them.
It reminded them of one thing:
Never become someone else's background.
Give everything in every match.
"I still can't believe we knocked out Argentina," Modric muttered.
Suker stretched. "What? Feeling sorry for them?"
Modric rolled his eyes. "Just feeling heavy. The World Cup is brutal."
Suker: "Isn't the Euros the same?"
"It feels different. The Euros are regional. The World Cup is global," Modric sighed. "How far do you think we can go?"
"Who knows?"
Suker shrugged. "From here on, it's not just about strength. It's about form, performance, and luck. If you want to lift the World Cup, you need all of it."
"I feel like our luck's been great so far."
"Let's see the draw. As group winners, we shouldn't get a bad matchup."
As long as teams like Brazil, Spain, Germany, and the Netherlands didn't finish second in their groups, and with a bit more luck, Croatia could navigate the knockouts smoothly.
Meanwhile, Suker figured it was time to invest some of his attribute points.
With three intense group-stage matches, he had earned eight attribute cards.
The knockouts would be full of elite teams.
He needed to be stronger.