France suffered a narrow 0-1 defeat to Croatia in the UEFA Nations League on Monday. Meanwhile, Didier Deschamps has asked France to "clear their heads" as it defends its title.
In what comes as a shocker in the UEFA Nations League (UNL) 2022-23 A-category, defending champion France was stunned by the 2018 FIFA World Cup runner-up Croatia 1-0 in its Group 1 clash. Played at the Stade de France in Paris on Monday, the hosts succumbed to a narrow 0-1 defeat, as Luka Modric's fifth-minute opener through a penalty was decisive enough to hand the visitors the three points. As a result, The Blues remain at the bottom of the table, with no wins and two draws and losses each. Besides, Croatia has risen to second place, with a couple of wins, a draw, and a loss. Meanwhile, French head coach Didier Deschamps was upset with his side's performance and asked his boys to "clear their heads" as it has registered an early exit from the tournament.
Speaking to TF1 following the defeat, Deschamps registered, "This month of June was tough in terms of results. We didn't have enough energy and strength against teams that had more than us. We weren't successful either. It was above all the freshness that was not there. There are always lessons to be learned with these results."
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"Each match is rich in lessons. The succession of matches was very hard. We lost players from one match to another. No doubt that other nations were affected [due to fatigue]. Will have to clear their heads, go back to their club, and start again for this new season," added Deschamps.
France would not be able to finish as the table-topper anymore, which means it would not be able to progress to the Finals, meaning that it has already relinquished its crown. It plays next in September, as it would aim to come up with twin thumping performances to avoid relegation from the top-tier of the competition.