Nations League holders France risk relegation

PARIS • Luka Modric's early penalty gave Croatia a 1-0 win over off-form France in Paris on Monday, as the World Cup champions finished their June run of Nations League matches without a victory in four outings.

The visiting captain, 36, stroked in his spot kick after just five minutes at the Stade de France, and the home side could not find an equaliser despite Kylian Mbappe returning to join Karim Benzema in the starting line-up.

"We had an inferiority complex against France after their win in the World Cup (they lost 4-2 in the 2018 final), and so to win at the Stade de France in front of almost 80,000 people against the world champions is extraordinary," said Croatia coach Zlatko Dalic.

France won the previous edition of the Nations League last year but they have managed just two points from their four outings this month, with home losses against Denmark and now Croatia sandwiching draws away to the Croats and in Austria.

As a result, Les Bleus are bottom of League A Group 1, seven points behind leaders Denmark, who beat Austria 2-0 in Copenhagen with first-half goals by Jonas Wind and Andreas Skov Olsen.

Didier Deschamps' team may now need to win their last two group games in September to avoid being relegated to the less glamorous League B - largely comprising teams that failed to make it to Qatar 2022.

Those matches are also the only games they have left before they begin their World Cup defence in Qatar in November.

Deschamps suggested that his players were exhausted after a long season both domestically and in Europe, adding: "It is not an excuse but in this get-together, we have lacked strength, energy and character too.

"It hurts because we have not managed to win a game. Maybe I didn't have the usual energy to transmit to them either.

"We will need everyone at the start of next season to be in the right frame of mind and in the right athletic condition."

Mbappe, Modric and Croatia teammate Marcelo Brozovic were the only surviving starters from the 2018 final to line up here.

The crowd of over 77,000 were stunned when Ibrahima Konate was adjudged to have fouled Josip Brekalo in the box, and the evergreen Modric made no mistake from six yards in the fifth minute.

From then on, it took the occasional burst of pace by Mbappe to bring the crowd to life, although the closest France came to scoring in the first half was when Christopher Nkunku blasted just wide from range.

Mbappe was again Les Bleus' most positive outlet after the break but Croatia managed to see out the game without ever coming under sustained pressure.

The final whistle was greeted by jeers and Deschamps will hope France's summer slump is simply down to fatigue among his players after a long campaign, rather than a sign of what might come later in the year.

AGENCE FRANCE-PRESSE