Danijel Subasic proved himself to be Croatia's superhero as he saved three penalties to take Croatia into the quarter final of the World Cup and then he dedicated his heroics to a former friend.
Croatia and Denmark played out one of the most dramatic finishes to a World Cup game that there's been with the two goalkeepers the real heroes of the match.
The game started at a blistering pace with Mathias Jorgensen giving the Danes a shock lead in the first minute when Croatia were unable to take care of a long throw in and Danijel Subasic made a mess of his save.
It took Croatia just three minutes to equalise as a cross bounced off a defender and fell nicely for Mario Mandzukic who put his chance away.
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What followed was 85 minutes of not too many chances and an extra time that didn't offer too much more. Then in the 116th minute Luka Modric put Ante Rebić in the clear and he rounded the keeper only to be brought down by Jorgensen but Modric's penalty was saved by Kasper Schmeichel.
Schmeichel and Subasic then made five saves between them in the shoot-out as Croatia advanced with a 3-2 shoot-out win.
After his heroics Subasic unveiled a t-shirt under his kit dedicated to former footballer Hrvoje Custic who tragically passed away during a game and the keeper pointed to the sky to dedicate the win to his friend.
Custic died 10 years ago whilst playing for NK Zadar, with Subasic, when he hit his head on concrete wall just meters from the sidelines after a collision with another player competing for the ball.
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Subasic always wears a t-shirt with his former colleagues picture on it underneath his jersey.
After the match the goalie was very humble about his part in the win, saying, "Give me a moment to come to myself. It's alright, we went through everything, penalties are a lottery, as we always say, and tonight the lottery was on our side. I'm glad I contributed to the team and to the joy of the people of Croatia."
An absolutely incredible World Cup moment and a great tribute to his friend too.
Featured Image Credit:Topics: Football News, Croatia, World Cup news, Denmark, World Cup