The fixtures suggested that the quarter-finals of the Nations League were going to be as heated as the final. Almost all the giants of Europe took to the field yesterday (Thursday) night. Where France lost to Croatia and Germany came back to win in Italy. Kylian Mbappe returned to the French national team after almost six months. But club teammate Luka Modric had to leave the field with their defeat against the Croatian army.
Croatia 2 : 0 France
The two teams faced each other in the first leg of the quarter-final at the Poljud Stadium in Croatia, aiming to advance to the semi-finals. The French dominated the match in every way. But the visitors could not score even with 16 shots. Of these, 6 were on target. On the other hand, Croatia could put 4 goals on target with 8 shots. In addition, France had 62 percent of the ball possession.
Croatia could have taken the lead in the fifth minute of this match. However, Andrej Kramarić’s weak penalty shot was saved by French goalkeeper Mike Mignon. In the 26th minute, Ante Budimir headed Perišić’s cross into the net. Ivan Perišić doubled the lead with a bullet-speed shot in added time (46) of the first half. Neither team scored a goal in the second half. On the other hand, French captain Mbappe took several shots but was defeated by Croatian goalkeeper Dominik Livakovic.
France will get a second chance on their way to the semi-finals. The return match will be on their home turf next Sunday. Croatia had not won a single match against the French in their first nine matches (6 losses, 3 draws). Then, including tomorrow’s match, the two-time World Cup winners lost to the Croats in two consecutive matches.
Germany 2 : 1 Italy
Italy hosted Germany at the San Siro in Milan. But the Germans stunned the home crowd with a 2-1 win and advanced to the semi-finals. However, the hosts took the lead in just the ninth minute of the match. Newcastle United midfielder Sandro Tonali scored the goal with a right-footed shot from inside the D-box. The hosts were able to maintain that lead throughout the first half.
But the picture changed in the second half. After regaining parity, Germany finally left the field with the lead. Forward Tim Kleindienst first equalized by heading in Joshua Kimmich’s cross in the 49th minute. Then Leon Goretzka made the difference in the 76th minute. This time the ball came from Kimmich again. The Bayern Munich midfielder scored the winning goal with a header after receiving his cross, just like the first goal. With this loss, Italy practically made it difficult for them to reach the semi-finals. The next match on Sunday is again at the home ground of the four-time world champions.
