Mats Hummels’ return to the national team went better for France than it did for Germany.

The experienced defender was recalled by Germany coach Joachim Löw for the European Championship for his leadership qualities, but he ended up scoring an own-goal Tuesday to give France a 1-0 victory.

“It was a struggle between titans,” France coach Didier Deschamps said.

Hummels was attempting to stop Lucas Hernández’s cross from reaching France forward Kylian Mbappé when he diverted the ball into his own net with his shin in the 20th minute.

“I can’t fault him,” Löw said. “It’s just bad luck. The ball in was fast. Maybe we should have attacked the throw in quicker. But it was hard for Mats to clear the ball.”

There were chances at both ends, but France looked more likely to score while Germany squandered opportunities.

İlkay Gündoğan should have scored in the first half but couldn’t direct his shot on target.