Cherki, Olise Star as France Stage Late Comeback To Defeat Belgium in Nations League

Michael Olise played a key role in the closing stages as France turned the game around to beat Belgium 4-1 in the UEFA Nations League. The result gave Zinedine Zidane his third win in four matches since taking charge of Les Bleus.

France controlled most of the possession as the first half went on, but Belgium regularly got in the way whenever the hosts looked ready to create a clear chance.

The Belgian forwards also started to find gaps as the game progressed, however, strong French defending disrupted their strike plans.

After repeated attempts, Belgium finally found the breakthrough in the 35th minute when Romeo Lavia picked out Lukebakio with a well-placed pass that caught the French defence off guard. The Belgian winger collected the ball inside the box and calmly sent his finish past Restes to put the visitors in front.

After taking the lead, Belgium kept its defence strong, ensuring that the French advances remain on the back foot.

France struggled to break through Belgium’s defence even after the interval. Lavia got in the way of Manu Kone’s shot, while Dembele was unable to find the target after Seys put him under pressure when the ball came his way.

With France still trailing, Zidane made three changes around the hour mark. The substitutions quickly paid off, as all three players went on to play a part in turning the match around. Their first strike came off in the 77th minute when Lucas Da Cunha found Desire Doue near the edge of the box, and the youngster placed his shot into the bottom corner effectively.

Immediately after three minutes, France took the lead in the game, as Rayan Cherki came up with a fine strike to make it 2-1 on the scoreboard.

France then completed the turnaround through Olise, as the forward reacted quickly to put the ball into the net before scoring again three minutes later after a fine piece of play from Doue.

This late rally allowed France to win the game convincingly and secure top position in Group A, with Italy sitting second and Belgium third in the standings.