World Cup quarter-finals

The quarterfinal match between the Netherlands and Costa Rica turned out to be the colosseum of glory for Tim Krul as the goalkeeper, who became the hero of the ...

But Romania made it all square 10 minutes later, with Florin Raducioiu finding the net. But this time, the story ended differently. The concept of a Golden Goal may be alien to the latest generation of football fans, but the last of it in a men’s FIFA World Cup came in a quarterfinal 20 years ago at the Nagai Stadium in Japan. Sweden was playing a quarterfinal game in the FIFA World Cup for the first time since 1958 and it was Romania’s first-ever quarters. The quarterfinal match between the Netherlands and Costa Rica turned out to be the colosseum of glory for Tim Krul as the goalkeeper, who became the hero of the match at the Fonte Nova Arena in Salvador. Before the quarters, here is a look at the five most exciting quarterfinal fixtures in the FIFA World Cup over the years:

With the 2022 World Cup quarterfinals set, we bring you one key factor and one player to know ahead of the matchups, plus predictions.

[Matty Cash](https://www.espn.com/soccer/player/_/id/234698/Matty-Cash), the Poland right-back, had a decent game against Mbappe and France in the round of 16. [Paul Pogba](https://www.espn.com/soccer/player/_/id/138860/Paul-Pogba), [N'Golo Kante](https://www.espn.com/soccer/player/_/id/173556/ngolo-kante)) and the players who have disappeared since the triumph in Russia in 2018 ( [Blaise Matuidi](https://www.espn.com/soccer/player/_/id/85010/Blaise-Matuidi), [Corentin Tolisso](https://www.espn.com/soccer/player/_/id/192060/Corentin-Tolisso)), the France head coach had to find a new plan and a new structure. [Antoine Griezmann](https://www.espn.com/soccer/player/_/id/140416/Antoine-Griezmann) in this World Cup and it is fascinating to see. [Vinicius Jr.](https://www.espn.com/soccer/player/_/id/252107/vinicius-junior), [Casemiro](https://www.espn.com/soccer/player/_/id/173666/casemiro), [Raphinha](https://www.espn.com/soccer/player/_/id/231050/raphinha) -- the list goes on. [Spain wasn't even able to beat goalkeeper](/soccer/fifa-world-cup/story/4827550/bounou-the-calm-presence-behind-moroccos-world-cup-success) [Yassine Bounou](https://www.espn.com/soccer/player/_/id/175149/Yassine-Bounou) in penalties. [Kylian Mbappe](https://www.espn.com/soccer/player/_/id/231388/Kylian-Mbappé) from a defensive point of view, but Kane has always wanted to be judged alongside the very best in the world: playing a defining role in a World Cup quarterfinal against top opposition would be one of the biggest moments in his career. [Frenkie de Jong](https://www.espn.com/soccer/player/_/id/219022/Frenkie-de-Jong) to try and nullify Messi. [Neymar](https://www.espn.com/soccer/player/_/id/132948/neymar), tucked in behind the centre-forward, will be in his zone a lot of the time and that's not a fun ride for anyone. [Netherlands](/soccer/team?id=449) vs. [Inter Milan](/soccer/club/_/id/110/internazionale). [Bracket](https://www.espn.com/soccer/bracket) [Croatia](/soccer/team?id=477) vs.

Can anyone slow down Kylian Mbappe or Brazil's scoring machine?

Brozo being able to keep pressure on Neymar before he can make the one-two plays with Richarlison will go a long way to keeping Croatia in the match. But the lead-up play that Brazil generate, mainly through Casemiro and Neymar, is what leads to the creativity we see in the end product. Van Dijk’s placement on Messi and Álvarez interchange play will be vital to the Dutch’s final third defending. If you’re going to pick a single center back in the world for that task against Argentina, you’d pick Van Dijk. In their match against Australia, Argentina finally looked like a team that might have the cohesiveness to be a threat for the semifinals at the World Cup. When Walker chooses to get involved offensively for even a moment, the counter is where Mbappe will look to pounce.