France captain Kylian Mbappe’s comeback to the national team ended in a surprising loss to Croatia in the first leg of their Nations League quarter-final.
Ante Budimir’s header deflected off French goalkeeper Mike Maignan and spun into the net, giving the hosts a 26th-minute lead.
Former Tottenham winger Ivan Perisic doubled Croatia’s advantage with a precise finish into the bottom corner during first-half stoppage time.
Croatia had earlier opportunities to score, but Andrej Kramaric’s eighth-minute penalty was saved by Maignan with his feet, and Josko Gvardiol’s powerful long-range effort was also denied by the AC Milan keeper.
France now face a challenging task to overturn the deficit in Sunday’s second leg at the Stade de France (19:45 GMT).
The French team has struggled in their last three Nations League matches when conceding first, with their last such victory dating back to October 2021 against Spain.
Mbappe, who has netted 20 La Liga goals in his debut season for Real Madrid, returned to the French squad after a six-month absence. However, he was unable to inspire his team despite taking six shots during the match.
**Player of the match:**
I. Perišić