France defeats Belgium 2 0 for first win in Nations League group stage

France, which made a number of changes to its starting lineup, defeated Belgium to earn its first win of the 2024-2025 UEFA Nations League group stage.

France, ranked No. 2 in the Federation Internationale de Football Association (FIFA), won 2-0 at home against Belgium, ranked No. 6 in the FIFA rankings, in the second leg of their Nations League Group A match at the Stade Grupama in Lyon, France, on Tuesday (Sept. 10).

France (W1 D1 L3), who had come from behind to defeat Italy 1-3 in their first group game on July 7, earned their first win of the tournament and moved into a tie for second place with Belgium (W1 D1 L3) but ahead of them in the head-to-head standings.

Italy (2 W, 6 P), who defeated Israel 2-1 earlier in the day, remained atop the group with their second straight win. Israel (0-0) dropped to last place with its second straight loss.

France made a number of changes to their starting lineup on the day.

They retained goalkeeper Mike Mignolet (AC Milan), central midfielder N'Golo Kante (Al Ittihad), and center back William Saliba (Arsenal) from the starting lineup against Italy and made eight changes to face Belgium, including Kylian Mbappe (Real Madrid) and Antoine Griezmann (Atletico Madrid).

France coach Didier Deschamps' shock therapy worked.

France opened the scoring in the 29th minute when Kolo Moani (Paris Saint-Germain) scored with a left-footed shot from the left side of the goal after Ousmane Dembele (Paris Saint-Germain) struck a right-footed shot from the right side of the penalty area that was blocked by the goalkeeper.

With the score 1-0 at halftime, France added to their lead 12 minutes into the second half through Dembele.

Dembele cut inside from the right side of the penalty area and scored with his left foot to seal the win.

France brought on Mbappe and Griezmann from the bench afterward, but Belgium surrendered without further goals.

Italy, in the same group, beat Israel 2-1 in Budapest, Hungary, earlier in the day, thanks to a 38th-minute Davide Frattesi (Inter Milan) opener and a 17th-minute Moisés Keane (Juventus) winner in the second half.

Israel pulled a goal back in the 45th minute through Mohammad Abu Fani (Peretz Barossi), but it was too late to turn the game around. 토토사이트 순위