UEFA Nations League 2020/21: France vs Croatia – tactical analysis

It was a rematch of the World Cup 2018 final, as each team came into the game with the hope of improving upon their disappointing performances over the weekend.

France claimed a hard-fought 1-0 victory against a resolute Swedish side, but the performance was widely regarded as below expectation. Meanwhile, Croatia was in Portugal, suffering a 4-1 embarrassment, conceding 27 shots while recording five of their own, with just two making it to the target.

In this tactical analysis, we’ll look at the finals rematch, breaking down France’s use of the half-spaces and each teams issues when building out of the back. This analysis will also take a deeper look into Croatia’s issues in attack, deconstructing Zlatko Dalić’s attacking tactics to figure out where Croatia is going wrong.

Lineups

Coming into the international window, Didier Deschamps evaluated the personnel at his disposal and decided to field a 3-4-1-2. Hugo Lloris made the start in goal with a back three of Dayot Upamecano, Clément Lenglet, and Lucas Hernández. Moussa Sissoko and Ferland Mendy provided the formation’s width while NGolo Kanté and Steven Nzonzi were the two ball-winners in the middle of the midfield. Antoine Griezmann played just beneath Wissam Ben Yedder and Anthony Martial, interchanging with his two forwards to get behind the Croatian defence.

Dalić’s side was coming off a 4-1 defeat at the hands of a Cristiano Ronaldo-less Portugal and looking to leave the international break with some positive momentum. In their 4-3-3, Dominik Livaković started in goal with Filip Uremovic, Dejan Lovren, Duje Ćaleta-Car, and Dario Melnjak forming the backline. Marcelo Brozović was the point man with Mateo Kovačić and Nikola Vlašić ahead of him in midfield while Ante Rebić, Andrej Kramarić, and Ivan Perišić were the forwards.

Among th