LYON, SEPT 10 – Randal Kolo Muani and Ousmane Dembele scored to beat Belgium 2-0 in the UEFA Nations League yesterday.
France bounced back from a disappointing home defeat to go down 3-1 to Italy last weekend despite taking an early lead.
It was not a full-strength France side that took to the field for the match in Lyon, with captain Kylian Mbappe dropping out as one of eight changes made by coach Didier Deschamps.
The result provided some relief for Deschamps after his team’s lackluster performance against Italy.
“Obviously I’m very happy with our reaction, and what we were able to do against a very good Belgium team and have caused us problems in the first 20 minutes, maybe because we were a bit nervous given the context,” said the coach, whose name has been mocked by some sections of the crowd when the teams are announced.
“But our performance on Friday was not the worst and I wouldn’t say everything is now beautiful, everything is set,” he added.
Les Bleus took the lead just before the half-hour mark, Kolo Muani finishing after Dembele’s shot was cleared by Belgian goalkeeper Koen Casteels.
Kevin De Bruyne’s Belgian side couldn’t find an equalizer and France scored again in the 57th minute thanks to a fine individual effort by Dembele.
The Paris Saint-Germain winger raced in from the right wing before blasting a shot into the net on his left foot.
Mbappe, Antoine Griezmann and Michael Olise were among the players brought off the bench in the second half as the team looked confident of victory.
The next matches are in October, including Italy against Belgium in Rome, and Israel meeting France on neutral territory in Budapest. – AFP
