Croatia pipped Saudi Arabia by 1-0 on Wednesday thanks to a late goal by Andrej Kramaric in a final warm-up match before their FIFA World Cup 2022 debut against Morocco.
In front of sparse stands and in the Riyadh heat, the Hoffenheim striker pounced in the middle of the Saudi defence to score the only goal of the evenly balanced match, which saw 2018 Ballon d’Or winner Luka Modric come on for the final half-hour.
The Croatians, drawn in Group F with Belgium, Canada and Morocco, will start the 2022 World Cup in Qatar on 23 November against the Moroccans at Al Bayt Stadium in Al Khor, north of Doha.
Saudi Arabia will start against Argentina on 22 November in a Group C that also features Mexico and Poland.
The Red Devils will face the Croats on 1 December in the third round of Group F.
