The Spanish shocked the Croatians with a goal early on, when it looked like the two-time defending European champions were going to cruise to victory. But the Spanish defence switched off just before half-time, allowing Nikola Kalinic to equalise.
Ivan Perisic was the hero of the night, as it was his goal in the 87th minute that allowed Croatia to win the game and the group ahead of Spain.
Another hero of Croatia's team was Croatia goalkeeper Danijel Subasic who saved Sergio Ramos' 73rd minute penalty. After the game Subasic revealed that a tip-off from Luka Modric on his Real Madrid colleague Sergio Ramos, relayed to him via captain Darijo Srna, helped him thwart Spain’s captain from the penalty spot.
"Luka Modric send a message through Srna to wait for Ramos and that he will shoot to my right side. And that’s what happened," Subasic said.
Now, instead of a tricky, second-round matchup with Italy and a difficult path to the final, the Croats get kicked over to the other side of the bracket where they will avoid the Italians, French, Germans, and Spanish. They might even avoid Portugal -- it depends on how the Portuguese make out on Wednesday.
Croatia beat the two-time reigning champions without its two key players -- Luka Modric who was out injured and Mario Mandzukic.