FIFA World Cup: Premier League players in the semi-finals

In the first semi-final match, Croatia will face Argentina, while Wednesday's clash will see Morocco face defending champions France. 

The Premier League tops the list regarding league representation, with several players competing in the last four. Now, we check out all the Premier League representatives at the World Cup 2022 semi-finals. 

Croatia

Ivan Perisic, one of Tottenham's star players, scored for Croatia in the World Cup final in 2018 and is the all-time top scorer for his country with ten goals. He scored an equaliser against Japan to lead his team to the round of 16. 

Even at 33, the key player on the left flank for his national team and his unmatched ability to send crosses with both feet could be lethal for opponents. 

Similarly, Mateo Kovacic is a member of the indispensable trio along with Luka Modric, and Marcelo Brozovic, who are celebrated as "the best Croatia midfield in history." He plays for Chelsea, who are currently ranked eighth in the league. 

Argentina

Argentina's goalkeeper Emiliano Martinez was the star of his country's penalty shootout at the World Cup. The Aston Villa stopper made diving saves and prevented Virgil van Dijk and Steven Berghuis from scoring in a 4-3 shootout win over the Netherlands in the quarter-finals. 

<blockquote class="twitter-tweet"><p lang="en" dir="ltr">Emiliano Martinez put on a penalty-saving masterclass as <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/Argentina?src=hash&amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#Argentina</a> beat the <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/Netherlands?src=hash&amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#Netherlands</a> in a shootout to settle a thrilling World Cup quarter-final which ended 2-2 after extra-time on Friday. <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/NEDvsARG?src=hash&amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#NEDvsARG</a> <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/WorldCup2022?src=hash&amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#WorldCup2022</a> <a href="https://t.co/pulRJXYi1F">https://t.co/pulRJXYi1F</a> <a href="https://t.co/bsowEOlakz">pic.twitter.com/bsowEOlakz</a></p>&mdash; Planet Sport (@PlanetSportcom) <a href="https://twitter.com/PlanetSportcom/status/1601343891374235649?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">December 9, 2022</a></blockquote> <script async src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script>

Manchester United player Lisandro Martinez was initially written off due to his height and physicality, but he excelled in Qatar. Similarly, Manchester City's Julian Alvarez has finally left Lionel Messi's shadow after a breakout performance this year. 

Two other Argentina players to watch out for are Manx Cristian Romero (Tottenham) & Alexis Mac Allister (Brighton & Hove Albion). 

Morocco 

Although Hakim Ziyech has delivered underwhelming performances for Chelsea, he has inspired his team to reach the semi-finals in Qatar. His heroics at the World Cup are challenging to miss, and many claims to have noticed a "different energy" when the decorated midfielder plays for his country.

Besides Ziyech, Morocco also have Nayaef Aguerd, who plays for West Ham United. The defender has been crucial in his country's march to the last four.

France

France are teeming with competent players from the Premier League, including William Saliba (Arsenal) and Raphael Varane (Manchester United). The 21-year-old Saliba has been one of Arsenal's most important players this season. 

He helped them pace ahead and create a five-point lead at the top of the league table. Although he is in good form, he only played in the quarter-final match, where France knocked England out of the tournament. 

Liverpool defender Ibrahima Konate has left a significant impact at the World Cup, and France captain Hugo Lloris (Tottenham) has led his team to another semi-final appearance. 

He is joined by Alphonse Areola (West Ham United), who is also a goalkeeper in the France national team.