A place in history was at stake as the national side attempted to qualify for the knock-out phase of a major tournament for the first time ever.
But it wasn’t to be as Luka Modric and Ivan Perisic combined to score twice in the second half after Callum McGregor had levelled for Scotland with the first goal of the tournament. Croatia had stunned Hampden into silence with an opener through Nikola Vlasic.
Scotland were without Billy Gilmour after the midfielder’s excellent performance at Wembley against England and Steve Clarke was forced into another change in the first half with Grant Hanley injured.
Here is how Scotland players rated in the biggest match the country has faced in decades …
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9. John McGinn - 5
Could exert no real influence or pose no real threat across a frustrating 90 minutes. The application and the appetite was all there but, as with his team-mates, the greater class of the opposition easily trumped these attributes. 5 Photo: ANDY BUCHANAN
10. Che Adams - 6
Looked from the get-go that he was in the mood, coming within a wicker of clipping in a McGinn cross, before a long-ranger just drifted past in the opening stages. Then his evening went quiet with the scraps of service largely miniscule. 6 Photo: JUSTIN TALLIS
11. Lyndon Dykes - 5
It was as if the contest was taking place in another room from the big Australian, so peripheral a figure did he appear throughout it. It wasn’t even that he performed badly, he just was so detached. 5 Photo: PAUL ELLIS
12. SUB - Nathan Patterson - 5
The joy of senior Scotland debut for the Rangers full-back could only have been tempered courtesy of it arriving as the country found themselves 3-1 down and seven minutes from heading out of Euro 2020. 5 Photo: Paul Ellis - Pool