England were last at this stage in 1990, when they lost to West Germany on penalties in that famous game when midfielder Paul Gascoigne was left in tears after being booked.
"We can feel the energy and the support from home and it's a very special feeling and a privilege for us," England manager Gareth Southgate said on Tuesday, July 10.
A chance of a lifetime for these young players, a career and life changing opportunity. Right behind them, no one wishes them more luck than me and the boys of '66. Good luck lads! #ENGCRO #WorldCup
— Sir Geoff Hurst (@TheGeoffHurst) 11 July 2018
Gary Lineker — nowadays a TV anchor with the BBC — scored England's only goal that night, forcing the game in Turin into extra time and he posted a picture on Instagram in a bid to inspire England goal machine Harry Kane.
Croatia Last Got This Far In 1998
Croatia, who beat Russia on Saturday, lost to the hosts France in the 1998 semi-finals.
Croatia defender Domagoj Vida was caught on camera shouting "Glory to Ukraine!", a famous slogan of the Ukranian far-right militants.
Another video has since emerged of Vida shouting "Burn, Belgrade, Burn".
Vida is likely to be booed by Russians in the crowd at the Luzhniki Stadium on Wednesday, July 11, and England may benefit from their support.
The Ducks of Destiny have spoken! #ENGCRO pic.twitter.com/STlojjJib4
— Bill Bailey (@BillBailey) 10 July 2018
How Do England Stop Modric?
Many England fans on social media are focusing on Luka Modric, Croatia's playmaker, who joined Real Madrid from Tottenham Hotspur in 2012 for £30 million (US$39.7 million).
Can’t sleep. Keep having nightmares about Modric and Rakitic playing piggy in the middle with hendo
— Hogan (@HoganBreeds) 11 July 2018
Stop Modric and Rakatic from playing and we’ll smash it tonight 🦁🦁🦁 🏴
— Liam moore (@Liam4moore22) 11 July 2018
The winner of Wednesday's match will take on France, who defeated Belgium 1-0 on Tuesday, July 10.
France coach Didier Deschamps said he was determined the erase the memory of the Euro 2016 final, which his side lost on home soil to Portugal.
"Finals have to be won because we have still not got over the one we lost two years ago," said Deschamps.
Southgate Talking Long-Term
Southgate appeared to be damping down expectations when he spoke in an interview of the future of the England team, who have the youngest average age in the tournament.
Mourinho on his 'boys' Jesse Lingard, Ashley Young, Phil Jones, Marcus Rashford… and Luka Modric #mufc
— Samuel Luckhurst (@samuelluckhurst) 11 July 2018
📹: @RTSportNews pic.twitter.com/NSmV5hRiSm
"We're going into a semi-final but it just seems like it's the next step on the journey," he said.
Things that didn’t exist the last time England reached the semi-finals:
— Rishi Bagree 🇮🇳 (@rishibagree) 10 July 2018
iPhone
Amazon
Android
iPod
Yahoo
YouTube
Snapchat
Spotify
Tesla
Skype
Uber
Airbnb
Bitcoin
Fitbit
Emojis
iPad
and
.
.
.
.
.
.
.
.
.
.
.
.
.
Croatia!!!#WorldCup #ENGCRO
"This team is nowhere near the level they're going to be capable of, partly because of their age and partly because over the next few years, with us and with their clubs, they're going to have more and more big-match experiences. So we're excited about the future but we also want to make the most of the opportunity we have," Southgate said.
Times Sport Dissects: Modric and Rakitic have been the focus so far — but could Brozovic actually be the key man for #CRO when they take on #ENG? @_TomClarke explains, and also looks at how their wide men could stretch England's defencehttps://t.co/rvO6OgSN3u pic.twitter.com/X2xiXeys3u
— Times Sport (@TimesSport) 11 July 2018
Meeting president Michael D Higgins at his official residence in Dublin, Harry was asked if football was coming home. Laughing, he replied: “Most definitely.” #ENGCRO pic.twitter.com/6rlkkozLlR
— David Young (@DavidYoungPA) 11 July 2018
