The first leg of France’s quarterfinal match against Croatia concluded in a shocking loss, marking Kylian Mbappe’s comeback to the national team.

The hosts seized the lead in the 26th minute when Ante Budimir’s header flew into the net after bouncing off France goalkeeper Mike Maignan.

Ivan Persic, a former Tottenham winger, increased their lead in first-half added time with a clean finish into the bottom corner.

Croatia should have taken the lead sooner, but Maignan’s feet stopped Andrej Kramaric’s penalty kick in the eighth minute, and the AC Milan goalkeeper also stopped Josko Gvardiol’s strong long-range attempt.

It will now be difficult for France to win the second leg of the match at the Stade de France on Sunday (19:45 GMT).

Since a triumph over Spain in October 2021, they have lost their last three Nations League games while giving up the lead.

After a six-month break, Mbappe, who has scored 20 La Liga goals in his first season with Real Madrid, returned to the French team.

Even though he had six shots in the game, he was unable to motivate them.