World Cup 2018: 3 key battles that decided Croatia's 2-1 win over England

#2 Luka Modric vs Jordan Henderson

Luka Modric was instrumental to Croatia winning the midfield battle today

With Trippier scoring exquisitely from a dead-ball situation in the fifth minute, the advantage looked to be in England's favour. They were controlling the game and were doing it with a subtle suave, moving the ball around comfortably and making ball retention a priority.

Croatia seems to be struggling with nerves in the early parts of the game, with Dele Alli, Jese Lingard and Jordan Henderson dictating the midfield. However, the Croatians slowly grew into the game, pressing higher and interfering with England's attempts at recycling possession.

Luka Modric was responsible for bringing down Dele Alli, which eventually led to the free-kick that resulted in his side going down by a goal but he quickly turned things around. The Croatian captain carefully orchestrated his side's build-up and was always a step ahead mentally when it came to negating Henderson's role.

Ivan Perisic was given the freedom to float and Ante Rebić continued to cause havoc down his flank and cause immense problems for Ashley Young.

With the game growing tenser by the minute, the English side missed a couple of key chances which would have seen them seal the deal. However, Modric's role in controlling the midfield ensured that Croatia were passing the ball with intent to score.

Too many times has it been seen that the ball is pinballed across the pitch for no end result but the Croatians were carving out near-opportunities which would bring them back into the game.

He was subbed off in the 119th minute, in what has been a tremendously balanced performance by the Real Madrid midfielder. His work will go unnoticed, but with 55% possession and 10 more shots than the Three Lions, the Croatians truly bossed the midfield.