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FIFA World Cup 2018 finalists France and Croatia faced off for the first time since their encounter in Russia as they battled in the UEFA Nations League 2020/21.
The visitors were the better side in the first half of the game and got an early lead via a stunning Dejan Lovren goal. The Croat's superb strike from a tight angle in the 17th minute helped his side assert their dominance on Didier Deschamps' men, and they continued to play some excellent football in the first 45 minutes.
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The game quickly turned on its head after a piece of brilliant play involving Ferland Mendy, Wissam Ben Yedder, and a returning Anthony Martial helped France restore parity. Martial found an unmarked Antoine Griezmann in the six-yard box, giving the Barcelona man an easy tap-in from close range.
Josip Brekalo came off the bench in the second half and set the game alight with a superb finish to give Zlatko Dalic's men the equaliser. However, that didn't last too long as Dayot Upamecano resisted his marker, Lovren, to head France into the lead from a Griezmann corner.
Substitute Olivier Giroud came on for his 99th France cap and converted a spot-kick to make it 4-2 — the exact scoreline by which Les Bleus won the World Cup final.
Here, we take a look at the major talking points from France's second win in two games in the Nations League.
#5 Croatia's old guard paves way for the future
Both France and Croatia were forced to ring in the changes for this clash. While the hosts have an endless list of talents to call upon, the visitors' youngsters gave Zlatko Dalic a glimpse into Croatia's future.
In the absence of several key players, the Vatreni blooded a relatively young side to face the world champions. In fact, Croatia's age average of their starting XI at the Stade de France was at 27, a notably lower figure than the side they fielded in their previous encounter with France.
Nikola Vlasic, for instance, had a tidy game in midfield as he won the ball back, hit the woodwork, and was effective while keeping things simple.
Wolfsburg attacker Josip Brekalo also left an excellent account of himself against the champions. Just ten minutes after coming on, he latched onto Mateo Kovacic's piercing ball with an arrowing diagonal run, kept hold of the ball amidst pressure from the onrushing Frenchmen and slotted home the equaliser.
Both 22-year-olds made just their eleventh appearance for the Vatreni and were positive in their approach to the game, showing Dalic that there is still hope after the eventual retirement of his old guard.
#4 France's strength in depth on full display
In their first Nations League 2020/21 encounter, France scraped their way through to a tight 1-0 win against Sweden. However, due to workload management as well as unavailability of players due to COVID-19, Didier Deschamps had to field lineups for both games that were almost entirely different from one another.
From the XI that started the game at the Friends Arena in Stockholm, skipper Hugo Lloris, Dayot Upamecano, N'Golo Kante, and Antoine Griezmann were the only players who made it to the XI against Croatia. Deschamps rang in changes aplenty, fielding several different players on the night at the Stade de France.
Regardless of these changes, one thing that stood out in particular was the depth that France have at their disposal. Even though there were seven new players drafted into the side, the world champions had the likes of Martial, Clement Lenglet, Lucas Hernandez, and a host of established stars to call upon.
Rennes wonderkid Eduardo Camavinga made his debut with a brief cameo and impressed profoundly with his display, showing Descamps that he has another valuable option to call upon.
Les Blues ultimately won by a relatively comfortable scoreline, but the amount of experience and quality available to Deschamps to pick and choose from is nothing short of sublime.
Also read: 5 Currently active players with most assists in Europe
#3 An improved display on a historic night from Antoine Griezmann
Barcelona forward Antoine Griezmann is one of the pillars of France's attack. The former Atletico Madrid superstar is one of Deschamps' go-to men and he was pivotal for the champions' triumph in Russia two years ago. However, as far as the Nations League was concerned, the 29-year-old had a night to forget during their previous outing in Stockholm.
Griezmann failed to manage even a shot on target let alone score a goal against Sweden. The attacker rounded off a miserable outing for his national side when he blasted a 90th-minute penalty wide which could have given France their second goal of the game.
Against Croatia, though, the World Cup winner was a much more livelier presence in every regard. Griezmann did well to lose his marker in the box and met Anthony Martial's delivery to poke the ball home and give France a much-needed equaliser. A few minutes later into the second half, his expertly-taken corner gave Dayot Upamecano an easy header to give his side the lead.
Overall, the Barcelona star played four key passes, won four out of his five duels, got himself a goal and an assist to make it a night to remember in France. Griezmann repaid Deschamps' faith in him by delivering a thoroughly professional display against Croatia. His goal was his 31st for France, helping him level Zinedine Zidane's tally as the joint-fifth highest scorer for Les Bleus.
#2 Croatia's defensive woes go on
The 2018 World Cup runners up began their Nations League campaign against a Cristiano Ronaldo-less Portuguese side. Despite the absence of their all-time top-scorer, the 2016 Euro winners ran riot against Zlatko Dalic's men, registering 27 shots at goal (eleven on target) against them. Croatia lost 4-1 on the night, and hoped for an improved display against Les Bleus.
However, it was more of the same from Croatia, although they would feel hard done by. They were undoubtedly the better side in the first half and for large parts of the game. The Vatreni were confident in their stride and managed to exploit the spaces left in behind by France's 3-5-2 system, troubling the hosts on several occasions.
Despite their attempts, they ultimately conceded four goals once again, which means that they've let in a staggering eight goals in their first two outings of the tournament. This also makes it four games running without a clean sheet for Croatia.
With several key players missing from the side including massive figures such as Luka Modric, Ivan Rakitic, and others, Croatia need to arrest their poor form at the earliest possible if they have any hope of progressing to the next round. Dalic's men take on Sweden in the next set of fixtures scheduled for 11th October, 2020.
#1 Anthony Martial's remarkable return to Les Bleus
Anthony Martial is one of the most in-form strikers in the Premier League in 2020 and is fresh off a career-best season in club football. The Frenchman earned his call-up to Deschamps' squad after an absence spanning over two years. After impressing with a brief cameo in their game against Sweden, Martial was drafted into a new-look starting XI alongside Wissam Ben Yedder at the tip of Les Bleus's attack. It's safe to say that he sure didn't disappoint.
The Manchester United centre-forward delivered a perfectly-weighted ball into the box after a superb sequence of play to allow France back into the game in the first half.
Just two minutes later, Martial did well to find himself on the end of a teasing ball from Ben Yedder, and the 24-year-old slotted home from close range. Although it went down as an own-goal from Croat keeper Dominik Livakovic, Martial's touch proved to be decisive and ultimately gave them the lead.
In the 90 minutes that Martial played for France, he won a staggering 11 out of his 18 ground duels (!), more than any player on the pitch. The Red Devils' number nine also drew nine fouls, more than every single one of his teammates combined. With three key passes, two big chances created and an assist on the night, Martial marked his return to his national side in some style.
Despite his misses in the second half of the game, it was more than just an encouraging display from Martial upon his return. He is sure to give Deschamps a selection headache for their next round of fixtures.
Also read: How Manchester United could line up in the 2020/21 campaign
