Croatia and France registered their first point of the UEFA Nations League, after both sides played out a 1-1 draw in Split on Monday.
Both sides had lost their respective Nations League openers and they set out with purpose with the aim of getting all three points. The opening half ended goalless though Croatia had a great chance to score.
The second period saw Les Blues open the scoring through Juventus midfielder Adrien Rabiot who was teed up by Wissam Ben Yedder. Croatia’s search for an equalizer paid off late on when they got a penalty – with Andrej Kramaric scoring from twelve yards to ensure both sides settled for a share of the spoils.
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FULL-TIME AT THE STADION POLJUD IN SPLIT: Croatia 1-1 France
83′ MIN: Andrej Kramaric coolly slots the spot-kick, giving the goalkeeper no chance.
GOOOAAALLL!!! Croatia 1-1 France (A. Kramaric)
81′ MIN: One of the Croatia players is in on goal but gets upended by the defender in the box. That could be a penalty, but the ref says NO! Play continues. Wait! The referee makes the VAR signal and he’s going to review that incident in the box from earlier. This could be a penalty for Croatia! Let’s see what he decides. IT IS A PENALTY!!!
PENALTY!!! To Croatia
52′ MIN: Wissam Ben Yedder tees up Adrien Rabiot inside the box, and he keeps his cool to find the left side of the goal.
GOOOAAALLL!!! Croatia 0-1 France (A. Rabiot)
SECOND HALF UNDERWAY AT THE STADION POLJUD IN SPLIT: Croatia 0-0 France
HALF-TIME AT THE STADION POLJUD IN SPLIT: Croatia 0-0 France
KICK-OFF AT THE STADION POLJUD IN SPLIT: Croatia 0-0 France
Faced with a number of changes and injuries, Deschamps has decided to return to a back four for this match. The attacking personnel are also new. There is no Kylian Mbappé or Karim Benzema, both of whom are not fully fit, Griezmann is missing as well. So the front pairing will be Ben Yedder and Nkunku. Deschamps has opted for wholesale changes in his side from the defeat to Denmark, with Aurelien Tchouameni being the only player who featured in their defeat to Denmark last Friday.
Influential skipper and Real Madrid midfielder Luka Modric is set to earn his 150th cap for his country. Marcelo Brozovic and Matteo Kovacic are also in the heart of the Croatian midfield.
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