June 07, (THEWILL) – Croatia snatched a late 1-1 draw against France thanks to Andrej Kramaric’s VAR-assisted penalty, denying Les Bleus their first win of the new Nations League campaign.
In a replay of the 2018 World Cup final won by France in Russia, Adrien Rabiot’s strike just after the break appeared to be powering the visitors to victory in Group A1.
But, with a VAR review, the hosts were able to take a share of the spoils. The linesman’s flag thwarted referee Marco Guida’s decision to award a penalty for Jonathan Clauss’ rough charge on Kramaric, but a replay revealed Luka Sucic was onside when receiving Mislav Orsic’s pass in the build-up.
With seven minutes remaining at Stadion Poljud, Kramaric converted the spot-kick to add late drama to a game that had been characterised by cagey play. And, on a day when Luka Modric was celebrated for his 150th cap, the two teams were obliged to settle for a point in the end.
On June 10, Croatia will go to Copenhagen to face Denmark, while France will fly to Vienna to face Austria on the same day, still looking for their first win.
Jude Obafemi is a versatile senior Correspondent at THEWILL Newspapers, excelling in sourcing, researching, and delivering sports news stories for both print and digital publications.
