Croatia vs. Brazil Betting Tips: Back Tite's side to rack up the shots in quarter-final clash

Croatia take on Brazil in the first of the World Cup quarter-finals on Friday and our man Scott Thornton is on hand with two tips that he likes the look of. 

Brazil sparked into life in the first half of their last 16 match with South Korea. Tite’s men conjured up a bit of magic to blow away the opposition in just over 30 minutes. The Brazilians know that there has to be both style and substance if they are to meet expectations in Qatar.

The five-time winners of the World Cup have a wealth of options in all areas of the field. They were the pre-tournament favourites with the bookmakers and none of what we have seen so far has jeopardised that position. However, we are now approaching the business end of the tournament and there are no easy matches.

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Croatia edged past Japan in their round of 16 match via a penalty shootout. 2018’s beaten finalists haven’t looked as effective as they did in Russia but they continue to get the job done. Modric and his teammates are very experienced and should provide a sterner test than South Korea.

Neymar returned to the starting 11 for Brazil and looked threatening in behind the striker. His creative presence could prove to be key for his side in the latter stages but it is Richarlison who has stolen the show so far. The Spurs’ forward has scored 3 goals in 3 matches. 2 of those goals are contenders for goal of the tournament.

Brazil’s blend of skill and flair is perfect for drawing tackles form the opposition. They have exceptional pace throughout the team, especially in the wide areas, and opposition players are forced to dive in to combat their marauding runs.

Their opponents in Qatar have managed 21, 22, 18 and 24 tackles (starting with the most recent). In competitive matches in 2022, Brazil’s opponents are averaging 19.5 tackles per game. Croatia’s full-backs should be particularly busy. 

Brazil are averaging 18.38 shots per game in competitive matches in 2022. Their rampant attack creates a whole host of chances and Friday’s match should be no different. They have 18, 21, 13 and 23 shots in their matches in Qatar. They had 18 against South Korea despite leading the game very early on.

Brazil’s last 5 matches where they have been similarly priced to win have seen them average over 20 shots per game. Croatia’s last 5 matches where they have been similarly priced had seen their opponents average over 15 shots per game. The Brazilians had 15 shots when these sides last met in 2018.

For the longer odds bet, we are going to take the same angles as the first with increased lines. 3 of Brazil’s 4 opponents have reached the required tackles for this bet to land. Switzerland were awarded 20 tackles by Opta on the final whistle but two were taken off. The Switzerland game is also the only match where Brazil have failed to have 18 attempts. 

Vinicius and Raphinha are accomplished dribblers. Right-sided defenders against Vinicius have made 5, 3 and 8 tackles so far in this tournament. Juranovic is set to play as the right-back for Croatia. All four right-backs or right-sided defenders (Serbia played with wing-backs) have made 3 tackles against Brazil. Meaning this 10/1 bet has landed in 3 of their 4 matches.

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