Japan and Croatia played out a goalless draw in the sweltering heat of Nuremburg to dent both team's chances of progressing to the second round.
Croatia just about shaded a hard-fought contest and had the best opening, a first half penalty, but a point apiece was a fair reflection of a tight
The game promised to a an exciting clash of two contrasting styles but it failed to live up to its billing in the early stages, with both sides setting out cautiously.
Having been beaten in their opening games both teams seemed more intent on not losing rather than looking for a victory.
Croatia, in particular, set their stall out much the same as they had done against Brazil, attempting to frustrate their opponents by sitting deep and allowing Japan the majority of possession.
After nothing in the way of goalmouth action the match sprang to life in the 21st minute when Croatia were awarded a penalty for a clumsy challenge by Tsuneyasu Miyamoto on Dado Prso.
Dario Srna was entrusted with the duty of despatching the spot-kick but he was denied by a superb save from Yoshikatsu Kawaguchi.
Although the penalty was at a nice height for a goalkeeper it was heading towards the corner until Kawaguchi's strong hand turned the ball round the post.
Croatia shrugged off the disappointment and began to exert their muscular presence onto the game.
The impressive Kranjcar rattled the crossbar with a ferocious strike from distance, while Kawaguchi was called into action again to tip Ivan Klasnic's effort wide.
The Japanese goalkeeper was a prominent figure throughout the first half, and never more so than when a routine back pass took a nasty bobble over his outstretched foot and trickled just wide.
Japan matched Croatia in terms of technique but struggled to carve open an organised defence.
The Asian side's biggest threat came from long-range shots, with Hidetoshi Nakata's thunderbolt from outside the area forcing Stipe Pletikosa into an acrobatic save.
Shunsuke Nakamura also delighted the crowd with some nice touches but Croatia remained in the ascendancy as the first half drew to a close.
Junichi Inamoto was brought on at half time to add some steel to the Japan midfield and the change seemed to be paying dividends as they created their best chance of the game.
Akira Kaji played a delightful one-two with Naohira Takahara before cutting a cross to Atsushi Yanagisawa. However, with Pletikosa stranded the striker failed to connect properly with an open goal in front of him and fired embarrassingly off target.
Croatia responded strongly but Kranjcar missed a glorious opportunity to open the scoring, shooting wide after latching onto a terrific Klasnic pass.
With the game finally becoming stretched in soaring temperatures a breakthrough looked inevitable, but a lack of quality in advanced areas was proving costly at both ends.
Japan's passing game was pleasing on the eye but lacked end product, while Croatia opted for a more direct approach, peppering Kawaguchi's area with crosses or trying to beat the offside trap.
Surprisingly there were very few clear-cut chances, although Alessandro Santos did spark some late panic in the Croatia box with a dangerous run and cross.
Croatia must now beat Australia in order to qualify for the knockout stages, while Japan will be going home unless they manage to shock Brazil.
Croatia just about shaded a hard-fought contest and had the best opening, a first half penalty, but a point apiece was a fair reflection of a tight
The game promised to a an exciting clash of two contrasting styles but it failed to live up to its billing in the early stages, with both sides setting out cautiously.
Having been beaten in their opening games both teams seemed more intent on not losing rather than looking for a victory.
Croatia, in particular, set their stall out much the same as they had done against Brazil, attempting to frustrate their opponents by sitting deep and allowing Japan the majority of possession.
After nothing in the way of goalmouth action the match sprang to life in the 21st minute when Croatia were awarded a penalty for a clumsy challenge by Tsuneyasu Miyamoto on Dado Prso.
Dario Srna was entrusted with the duty of despatching the spot-kick but he was denied by a superb save from Yoshikatsu Kawaguchi.
Although the penalty was at a nice height for a goalkeeper it was heading towards the corner until Kawaguchi's strong hand turned the ball round the post.
Croatia shrugged off the disappointment and began to exert their muscular presence onto the game.
The impressive Kranjcar rattled the crossbar with a ferocious strike from distance, while Kawaguchi was called into action again to tip Ivan Klasnic's effort wide.
The Japanese goalkeeper was a prominent figure throughout the first half, and never more so than when a routine back pass took a nasty bobble over his outstretched foot and trickled just wide.
Japan matched Croatia in terms of technique but struggled to carve open an organised defence.
The Asian side's biggest threat came from long-range shots, with Hidetoshi Nakata's thunderbolt from outside the area forcing Stipe Pletikosa into an acrobatic save.
Shunsuke Nakamura also delighted the crowd with some nice touches but Croatia remained in the ascendancy as the first half drew to a close.
Junichi Inamoto was brought on at half time to add some steel to the Japan midfield and the change seemed to be paying dividends as they created their best chance of the game.
Akira Kaji played a delightful one-two with Naohira Takahara before cutting a cross to Atsushi Yanagisawa. However, with Pletikosa stranded the striker failed to connect properly with an open goal in front of him and fired embarrassingly off target.
Croatia responded strongly but Kranjcar missed a glorious opportunity to open the scoring, shooting wide after latching onto a terrific Klasnic pass.
With the game finally becoming stretched in soaring temperatures a breakthrough looked inevitable, but a lack of quality in advanced areas was proving costly at both ends.
Japan's passing game was pleasing on the eye but lacked end product, while Croatia opted for a more direct approach, peppering Kawaguchi's area with crosses or trying to beat the offside trap.
Surprisingly there were very few clear-cut chances, although Alessandro Santos did spark some late panic in the Croatia box with a dangerous run and cross.
Croatia must now beat Australia in order to qualify for the knockout stages, while Japan will be going home unless they manage to shock Brazil.
