ENGLAND
*England's first semifinal appearance at a World Cup came at their home tournament in 1966. In front of more than 90,000 fans at Wembley Stadium, Bobby Charlton put them ahead in the first half and added another after the break to go 2-0 up against Portugal. The Portuguese cut the deficit in the 82nd minute with Eusebio's penalty but the hosts held on to set up a final against West Germany, whom they beat 4-2 after extra time to lift their only international trophy to date.
*The Three Lions reached their second World Cup semifinal in 1990 but it was a far less joyous experience. England lost 4-3 in the tie-breaker after the game ended 1-1.
For all latest news, follow The Daily Star's Google News channel. CROATIA
*Croatia, who became independent after the breakup of Yugoslavia in the early 1990s, made their first World Cup appearance in 1998 and reached the semifinals at their very first attempt. Led by current Croatian Football Association President Davor Suker Croatia enjoyed a fine run to the last four.
*Before its independence Croatia was part Yugoslavia, who had reached the World Cup semifinals twice. Nicknamed 'the Brazilians of Europe', the Yugoslavs lost to Uruguay 6-1 in their 1930 semifinal at the inaugural World Cup. They also reached the last four in 1962 before losing to Czechoslovakia.
Leave your comments