France found the breakthrough late against Belgium on Monday night, with Michael Olise scoring in the 88th minute to seal a 1-0 Nations League victory and keep Les Bleus top of their group.
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Zinédine Zidane made widespread changes from the side that had beaten Turkey 1-0, but France still produced a convincing overall display against Belgium. The result was their second straight win after the success in Turkey.
Olise began the match among the substitutes, yet made the decisive impact after coming on, striking two minutes from the end to settle a contest France had largely controlled without finding an earlier finish.
Désiré Doué carried much of France’s attacking threat in the absence of Kylian Mbappé, who was injured and had returned to Madrid. Ousmane Dembélé was also unavailable from the starting line-up, while Olise waited on the bench.
Doué played with the responsibility of a leading attacker, operating across the front line and contributing both in the final third and in defensive recovery. He was involved in several of France’s best moves.
The young forward came closest early on when he worked his way through three Belgian players before hitting the crossbar in the 12th minute. He then tested Belgium again with two dangerous efforts in the second half, in the 52nd and 56th minutes.
Italy await France on Friday
France will now host Italy on Friday night, with their place at the top of the Nations League group intact after victories over Turkey and Belgium.
