Musa, Pašalić reach World Cup knockouts with Croatia | OneFootball

By Ari Liljenwall

Croatia booked their place in the 2026 FIFA World Cup knockout stages on Saturday, topping Ghana, 2-1, at Philadelphia Stadium in their decisive Group L finale.

The victory secured a second-place finish in Group L behind England, sending Croatia into the Round of 32 as the group runners-up.

FC Dallas striker Petar Musa and Orlando City winger Marco Pašalić are part of head coach Zlatko Dalić's squad, with each contributing to Croatia's successful group-stage campaign.

Pašalić helped close out Saturday's victory over Ghana, entering as an 88th-minute substitute as the Vatreni saw out the 2-1 result, delivered by Nikola Vlašić's 83rd-minute game-winner.

Pašalić also played a key role in Croatia's 1-0 Group L win over Panama earlier this week, starting the sequence that led to the game-winning goal with a slick backheel pass, then nearly finding the net just minutes later.

Musa, meanwhile, made his mark earlier in the tournament by scoring against England in Croatia's World Cup-opening loss to England. 

The FC Dallas striker is among the top No. 9s in MLS, scoring double-digit goals for the last three seasons. This season, Musa has 12g/2a for FCD as he chases the 2026 MLS Golden Boot presented by Audi.

After opening the tournament with a defeat to England, Croatia responded with victories over Panama and Ghana to secure advancement from Group L and continue their pursuit of another deep World Cup run. 

Led by legendary midfielder Luka Modrić, Mateo Kovačić and Ivan Perišić, Croatia have developed a reputation as one of the tournament's more consistent performers,  finishing as runners-up in 2018 and reaching the semifinals in 2022.

WATCH: Croatia winger Marco Pašalić | 2026 FIFA World Cup