Challenge

Croatia Arena
Spectators: 44 (Terracing: 34, Seating: 10, VIP seats: 0) When Róbson Messias came up free with the goalie in the 3rd minute, the Rockets fans jumped to their feet. But the shot missed the goal by a fraction of an inch, and the fans sat back down disappointed that Róbson Messias couldn't finish the play. 6 minutes into the match, João Pedro de Senna had an open shot that he just couldn't miss and scored to the right of Ilija Skugor. Croatia's manager could be seen yelling to the referee that João Pedro de Senna was offside, but the referee ignored the protest. 0-1. The supporters of Croatia booed when Rockets was adjudged a doubtful freekick after 8 match minutes in a wonderful position. Elder Rocha didn't get a good kick on the ball. After a rather tough play, Rockets's Toninho Terra got a free kick in the 10th minute. In the 14th minute Gilvan Chaves shot on, it seemed, an open goal, but Ilija Skugor saw the ball coming and threw himself on it before it passed the goal line. Rockets's Dorival Bittencourt got a good chance for a goal in the 18th minute, but he totally mistimed the shot and it went over the crossbar. In the 21st match minute, Croatia was awarded a freekick, the ball was picked up by Damir Pongrac to maneuver through the defense. João Adolfo Mineiro made a fantastic save in the 27th minute, when Toni Mauzer sent off a good shot on target. In the 29th minute Martin Bosak shot on, it seemed, an open goal, but João Adolfo Mineiro saw the ball coming and threw himself on it before it passed the goal line. In the 30th minute, Croatia's Patrik Terzic seemed to kick out at an opponent. The referee saw this and, surprisingly, showed Patrik Terzic the red card, dismissing him from the pitch. The coaching staff of Croatia protested bitterly, but the referee would have none of it, and Patrik Terzic had no choice but to slowly walk off the pitch. A collision led to Croatia getting a freekick after 31 minutes play. Patrik Terzic hit a great ball. After a defensive mix-up in Croatia's zone, Róbson Messias stole the ball and had only the goalie to beat. Ilija Skugor came out of the goal and Róbson Messias tried to chip the ball over his head. To his dismay, the ball went over the crossbar and out of play.

The wind increased when Róbson Messias made the kick off in the second half. Ilija Skugor made an important save on a dangerous shot by João Pedro de Senna in the 57th minute. When Toni Mauzer fell near the penalty area in the 61st minute he thought he would be awarded a free kick. The referee ignored Croatia's protests and gave Toni Mauzer a yellow card for diving instead. In the 62nd match minute, Croatia was awarded a freekick, the ball was picked up by Toni Mauzer to maneuver through the defense. When Neven Culina fell near the penalty area in the 66th minute he thought he would be awarded a free kick. The referee ignored Croatia's protests and gave Neven Culina a yellow card for diving instead. The supporters of Rockets booed when Croatia was adjudged a doubtful freekick after 66 match minutes in a wonderful position. Neven Culina didn't get a good kick on the ball. After a rather tough play, Croatia's Eduard Kostelac got a free kick in the 74th minute. Croatia's Ilija Skugor proved his good apprehension of play when he, in the 76th minute of the match, managed to save Croatia from getting a goal against them. 80 minutes into the match, Croatia's goal looked a bit too open when Gilvan Chaves came free, but Ilija Skugor reached the ball before it rolled over the goal line. Croatia's Ilija Skugor played magnificently when he managed to stop the ball from hitting the goal, after a sharp shot by Gilvan Chaves in the 83rd minute of play. 84 minutes into the game, Dinko Stankovic was given a yellow card after he appeared to trip an opposing player. Croatia's manager was livid on the sidelines, but the referee was unmoved and gave Rockets the free kick. Ilija Skugor didn't have a chance when a screaming shot from João Pedro de Senna went, in the 96th minute, to the upper right corner, 0-2 was the resulting score. When the final whistle sounded Rockets left the ground with the victory after a much better performance than Croatia.