Croatia vs France: When Mbappe Returned, But Forgot to Bring Goals
Well, Croatia vs France wasn’t supposed to go like this — unless you’re Croatian, in which case: Dobrodošli to the party!
On a spicy Split evening, Croatia stunned Kylian Mbappe and his returning captaincy with a 2-0 win in the Nations League quarter-final first leg. And no, that’s not a typo.
Mbappe returned to the national team after six months, got the armband, and then… sort of ghosted the game. Meanwhile, Ante Budimir and Ivan Perisic said, “We got this,” and turned France’s backline into decorative training cones.
Croatia Scores, France Snores
It all started with a penalty — and not a good one. In the 8th minute, Croatia’s Andrej Kramaric got a golden chance from the spot. He went low. Mike Maignan went… with his feet? The AC Milan keeper saved it like he was stepping on Lego.
But Croatia weren’t flustered. Perisic, still kicking like he’s 25, delivered a delightful cross that Budimir met with a header in the 26th minute. The ball hit Maignan, rolled around like it forgot the rules of physics, and somehow landed in the net.
Then, just before the break, Perisic decided, “Why assist when you can finish?” A laser-guided strike into the bottom corner made it 2-0, and Split erupted like they’d just won Eurovision and the World Cup in the same night.
France Tried. Kinda.
The second half began with a glimmer of hope. Ousmane Dembele fired into the side netting, which fooled exactly zero people into thinking it was a goal. A few minutes later, he tested Dominik Livakovic, who made sure no French comeback fairy tale would be written in Split.
Bradley Barcola, probably too surprised to find himself in a scoring position, nearly met Guendouzi’s ball inside the six-yard box. Keyword: nearly.
As for Mbappe? Six shots, minimal danger, maximum frustration. The Real Madrid star looked more like a tourist in Split than a savior in blue.
France’s Defence? More Like a Suggestion
Let’s talk about the French backline — or what was supposed to be a backline. Ibrahima Konate and William Saliba looked like they’d just met in the tunnel. Their performance was less “wall of steel” and more “open door policy.”
Coach Didier Deschamps, probably regretting letting Antoine Griezmann play with Lego instead of defending, will need to conjure some serious magic in Sunday’s second leg in Paris.
Croatia’s Veterans Roll Back the Years
While France’s youngsters stumbled, Croatia’s veterans rolled back the clock like it was 2018 again.
- Ivan Perisic, 35 years old and still giving defenders therapy bills.
- Luka Modric, 39 and still controlling tempo like a classical composer.
- Mateo Kovacic, solid.
- Josko Gvardiol, meaner than your WiFi when you forget the password.
Oh, and let’s not forget the Split crowd. Loud, passionate, and possibly louder than Maignan’s eardrums could handle.
FAQs
Croatia defeated France 2-0 in Split.
Ante Budimir scored the first and Ivan Perisic added the second just before half-time.
Mbappe had six shots but made little impact. It was a quiet return for France’s newly reappointed captain.
Andrej Kramaric missed an early penalty, which was saved by Mike Maignan.
The second leg takes place Sunday at the Stade de France, with kick-off at 19:45 GMT.
Conclusion: Croatia vs France – The Comeback Tour That Got Cancelled
Croatia vs France was billed as Mbappe’s grand return, but instead, it turned into the Perisic and Budimir show, with a supporting cast of Maignan’s saves and France’s invisible defending.
If this was supposed to be France’s warm-up for silverware, they might want to hit the reset button — hard. Croatia, on the other hand, look like a team that aged like fine wine… and then poured that wine all over France’s tactical plans.
So, what’s next? France must now flip this script at home — and fast. Otherwise, the only thing Mbappe will be lifting this summer is regret.
