Toronto, June 24 -- Croatia revived their FIFA World Cup campaign and knocked Panama out of the tournament with a gritty 1-0 victory in their Group L encounter at BMO Field here on Wednesday IST.
With their hopes of reaching the Round of 32 hanging in the balance, Croatia delivered when it mattered most as Ante Budimir struck the only goal of the match in the 54th minute, finishing neatly at the back post after a dangerous delivery from Josip Stanisic.
The result lifted Croatia to four points from three matches, moving them within one point of group leaders England and second-placed Ghana ahead of the final round of fixtures. Panama, meanwhile, were left rooted at the bottom of the table and mathematically eliminated.
After a cagey first...