October 6 – Coming from behind, France beat Belgium 4-1 to take command of their UEFA Nations League group.
It was Les Bleus’ second win against their neighbors in the space of a week, and capped off a successful Nations League for manager Zinedine Zidane, who made his debut with a 1-0 win in Turkey.
A 1-1 draw with Italy meant Didier Deschamps’ successor had to wait for his first home win, but his side did well in a packed Stade de France on Monday, clawing back Dodi Lukebakio’s 35th-minute goal to make it four goals in the final 20 minutes. Twice substitutes Michael Olise, Desire Doue and Rayan Cherki got on the scoresheet against a weakened Belgian side, who missed the suspended Kevin De Bruyne of Napoli and Youri Tielemans of Manchester United.
Zidane has reflected positively on his first four matches in charge of the French national team: “My assessment of this first meeting as a coach? There is nothing to criticize. Absolutely nothing, quite the opposite. I was even pleasantly surprised by the mentality of the players; I knew they were true professionals, but they have really taken their work seriously, a group that understands each other well”.
For Belgium and new coach Mark Van Bommel, it was a reality check after convincing wins against Italy and Turkey. Twice, France proved too strong. Van Bommel took over from Rudi Garcia, who led Belgium to the round of 16 of the World Cup.
The Dutch downplayed the strong score. He said: “When I look at the four games, there are far more positives than negatives.”
“The difference is really quite significant. It’s just that, right now, countries like this are still much better. But we’re on the right track. I think it’s only a matter of time before we beat a top-tier nation. I really think the margins are very good, although that might seem a little strange with a 4-1 score on the board.”
England close the international break with the Czech Republic at home on Tuesday. In the second tier of the Nations League, Scotland entertain Slovenia.
Contact the writer of this story, Samindra Kunti, at (email protected)
