Michael Olise produced a superb late goal to secure a 1-0 Nations League win for France over Belgium in Brussels, giving Zinedine Zidane a second consecutive victory since taking charge.
Introduced from the bench with the match still scoreless, Olise collected the ball inside his own half before launching a decisive run in the 88th minute. He reached the edge of Belgium’s penalty area and curled his finish beyond Senne Lammens.
France were without Kylian Mbappé, who returned to Real Madrid after suffering a left-knee injury while netting the winner against Turkey on Friday. Despite his absence, the visitors created the clearer opportunities, with Désiré Doué hitting the crossbar before half-time and debutant Lucas Da Cunha striking the post shortly after the interval.
A largely uneventful goalless draw appeared likely until Olise, who replaced Bradley Barcola in the 77th minute, delivered the winning moment. France lead Group A1 with six points and next welcome Italy to the Stade de France on Friday, while Belgium host Turkey in Liège.
Italy responded emphatically to their opening 2-0 home defeat against Belgium by defeating Turkey 4-1 on a rain-soaked evening in Bursa.
Roberto Mancini’s side excelled in the difficult conditions and scored three times during the opening half-hour, capitalising on mistakes in the hosts’ waterlogged goalmouth. The first arrived when Bursa-born full-back Zeki Celik mishit an attempted clearance from a low corner, sending the ball towards Alessandro Bastoni, who drove it into the roof of the net.
In the 23rd minute, Altay Bayindir failed to deal with Michael Kayode’s cross-shot and pushed the ball into the path of Lazio midfielder Davide Frattesi, who converted. Four minutes later, Kayode was left unmarked on the right of the penalty area and beat the goalkeeper at the near post.
Turkey revived the home crowd’s hopes two minutes after the restart when Gianluigi Donnarumma was drawn towards Oguz Aydin beyond the far post. Aydin picked out Baris Yilmaz, who fired into the unguarded net, but Italy restored their three-goal advantage five minutes later when Pio Esposito headed home after Sandro Tonali had struck the woodwork.
Yilmaz appeared to reduce the deficit again with a curling finish, but the goal was ruled out because Aydin was offside while moving in front of Donnarumma. Pio Esposito and his older brother Sebastiano also entered the record books as the first siblings to start together for Italy since Aldo and Luigi Cevenini in 1915.
In League B, Northern Ireland were held to a frustrating 0-0 home draw by Hungary after failing to convert several opportunities. Patrick Kelly threatened twice before the break and clipped the crossbar with a looping attempt, while Balázs Tóth denied Isaac Price late in the match.
Michael O’Neill’s team were unable to find a winner and also survived some tense moments near the end. Ruairi McConville blocked Willi Orban’s effort before Pierce Charles saved Alex Tóth’s attempt. Northern Ireland are level at the top of the group with Ukraine, who played out a 0-0 draw against Georgia in Tbilisi.
In Group B4, Sweden defeated Poland 3-1 in Solna to record a second victory from two matches. Celtic midfielder Benjamin Nygren converted at the far post after eight minutes, although Sebastian Szymanski equalised with an effort that struck both posts before crossing the line.
Yasin Ayari put the hosts back in front with a composed finish despite losing his balance, and Arsenal striker Victor Gyökeres later completed the scoring. Bosnia and Herzegovina occupy second place in the group following a 4-2 away victory over Romania in Bucharest.
In League C, Aleksa Latkovic scored in the 89th minute to seal a 3-2 victory for Montenegro against Armenia, moving his team to the top of their group. Elsewhere, Latvia and Cyprus finished level at 0-0.
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