France Faces Uphill Battle After 2-0 Loss to Croatia in Nations League Quarterfinals

Defensive lapses and a failed tactical setup leave France needing a significant win in the return leg at Stade de France to keep their Nations League hopes alive.

Croatia defeated France 2-0 in Split with first-half goals from Ante Budimir and Ivan Perisic, taking advantage of defensive errors.
France's tactical experiment with Ousmane Dembélé as a central playmaker failed, prompting adjustments at halftime.
Mike Maignan saved an early penalty, preventing a larger deficit, but France struggled to recover from a poor first-half performance.
The French team showed improvement in the second half but failed to score, leaving them needing a two-goal margin to force extra time or three goals to advance outright in Sunday's return leg.
Didier Deschamps and players emphasized the need for a stronger performance, drawing parallels to past comebacks like their 2013 win over Ukraine.