Reeling after a shock defeat at home to a patchwork Italy side, France are hoping to rebound against Belgium in Lyon on Monday as UEFA Nations League play continues.
Les Bleus were ahead in Paris after just one minute, but from there were put to the sword as Italy pummeled them with transition and efficiency in the final third. The visitors took their 11 shots and turned them into three goals on 1.74 xG, while France could only muster 11 shots worth 0.61 after Bradley Barcola's early opener.
Kylian Mbappe was kept to just two low-value shots and just three passes into the final third, as Didier Deschamp's side looked toothless for most of the game, powerless to stop Italy's charge.
Belgium's start to Nations League play went swimmingly, as they topped Israel 3-1, dominating proceedings from start to finish and only conceding a 36th minute own-goal on the other end.
France were extremely poor against Italy in the last game, and Belgium pummeled Israel, but we're going to play this on long-term body of work rather than what seems to be a fluky result for Les Bleus.
We all know what France are capable of, especially at home, while Belgium haven't beaten a top side in ages. The Red Devils lost to France 1-0 just a few months ago at Euro 2024, in a game where Belgium had almost nothing in the attacking third.
More goals should be expected here as both teams have sold out in recent games for more attacking production, but France should rebound, albeit closer than maybe they wanted.
Late line movement just before kickoff has swung slightly in Belgium's favor, an interesting shift as the market seems to take into account France's poor performance last time out.
While we're taking a longer-term approach to the overall moneyline result, recent play can indicate more goals should be scored this time around than last time they met. Belgium were putrid at Euro 2024, but Kevin de Bruyne and Jeremy Doku looked revitalized against Israel, a very positive sign for the Red Devils.
With that, France have been poor defensively for a time now. As soon as Didier Deschamps caved to public pressure for the team to play more attractive football, it has come at a major defensive cost. They have conceded five goals to Spain and Italy in their last two, going in front early in both of those matches before capitulating at the back.
Both sides have scored in two of the last four meetings between these two sides, so there's plenty of reason that can continue.
Both these sides have shown a propensity to both score and concede early goals to make the game interesting before the break.
Belgium went into halftime against Israel level at 1-1, and then went in front just three minutes after the second half restart. France, meanwhile, had a first-minute goal come crumbling down against Italy, just as they did against Spain in the Euro knockout stages.
The match between France and Belgium will be televised in the United States on FS2. This channel is available to stream on Fubo, who are offering a free seven-day trial for new users.
The match is also available to stream in Spanish on ViX.
In Canada, this game from Dublin will be streamed exclusively on DAZN. Meanwhile, in the UK, it will be streamed on Viaplay International YouTube.
LYON, France (AP) — France captain Kylian Mbappé was left out of the starting lineup to play Belgium on Monday in the UEFA Nations League.
Mbappé played the full game in a 3-1 loss to Italy in Paris on Friday and coach Didier Deschamps changed the entire forward line to face Belgium in Lyon. Mbappé was replaced by Marcus Thuram in a central role.
Top European national teams have this week been rotating and resting star players who had limited preseason preparation in August after the European Championship.
Euro 2024 winner Spain let 17-year-old winger Lamine Yamal play only the first half in a 4-1 win against Switzerland on Sunday. Spain captain Rodri played his first competitive minutes of the season in Geneva after being rested by Manchester City in its three English Premier League games so far.
Cristiano Ronaldo did not start for Portugal on Sunday, went on as a second-half substitute and scored the winning goal against Scotland in Lisbon.
France boss Didier Deschamps opted to make a number of changes to the side that suffered a 3-1 defeat against Italy, with the likes of Antoine Griezmann, Kylian Mbappe and Bradley Barcola dropping down to the bench.
Marcus Thuram was one of those brought into the lineup, and he went close to opening the scoring in the 29th minute when he saw his driven effort kept out by Koen Casteels.
Less than a minute later, Thuram's fellow forward Randal Kolo Muani found the all-important breakthrough, thumping the ball home after Casteels had parried Ousmane Dembele's initial effort.
France ultimately stood firm until the interval, and they will look to produce another strong defensive display in the second period.
Les Bleues have done a fine job of negating Belgium's threat in the first half, and they should fancy their chances of holding onto their lead, especially as they have enough attackers on the bench who could come on and take the game away from the Red Devils.
HALF-TIME PREDICTION: FRANCE 2-0 BELGIUM
While Les Bleus lost at home to Italy on Group 2's opening night, the Red Devils claimed maximum points ahead of their trip to Lyon.
Though France seized the lead inside 13 seconds of their Nations League opener, at home to Italy on Friday night, they eventually finished up empty-handed, having been undone by a resurgent Azzurri.
In-form forward Bradley Barcola recorded his nation's fastest-ever goal, but Italy equalised in spectacular style and the two teams were level at half time.
France then conceded twice more after the break, ultimately losing at home to their Italian counterparts for the first time in 70 years.
After a sub-par showing at Euro 2024, long-serving coach Didier Deschamps was expected to produce a convincing performance for the Parisian public, but he is now under pressure to avoid defeat against another of Les Bleus' neighbours.
Deschamps was in charge for a French victory in the 2021 Nations League finals, but his team finished a distant third in their group last time around, accruing only five points from six games.
Under UEFA's new format for 2024-25, the nation that finishes bottom of each League A group will be automatically demoted, while third-placed teams must take part in a relegation playoff.
Joining Italy at the top of the very early Group 2 table, Belgium saw off Israel on neutral territory to take all three points from their opening match.
Inspired by captain Kevin De Bruyne, the Red Devils won 3-1 in Hungary, where the game was played due to security concerns.
After De Bruyne bagged a brace, he turned down the chance to complete his hat-trick with a penalty, and Lois Openda could even afford to miss from the spot as Youri Tielemans had also scored earlier in an open second half.
Now, Domenico Tedesco's side will seek revenge for their tame exit from Euro 2024, which came at the hands of France just two months ago.
Ultimately, Tedesco is hoping to turn the page on his first tournament in charge and ensure Belgium secure a top-two spot in their Nations League group, before looking towards the 2026 World Cup.
The Belgians were unable to reach the last Nations League finals, and improving on their best placing of fourth overall - recorded back in 2021 - would show they are on the right track.
After Michael Olise was called up for the first time, having impressed at the Olympics as France claimed a silver medal, the Bayern Munich winger started on Friday and will now vie with Ousmane Dembele to keep his place.
Didier Deschamps also brought Bradley Barcola into Les Bleus' lineup against Italy - and to great effect - but has otherwise kept faith with most of his Euro 2024 team; free agent Adrien Rabiot and Inter Milan defender Benjamin Pavard were both dropped, though.
After conceding three goals, Jules Kounde and Dayot Upamecano are candidates for promotion from the bench, while Marcus Thuram and Randal Kolo Muani are among the hosts' alternative attacking options.
In addition to the self-imposed absence of Real Madrid goalkeeper Thibaut Courtois, who has a longstanding rift with Domenico Tedesco, Belgium will again be missing all-time top scorer Romelu Lukaku on Monday, as the new Napoli signing has been rested.
Veteran defender Jan Vertonghen has retired from international football, while Arsenal's Leandro Trossard was not selected, as Tedesco offered some younger players a chance to impress against Israel: Maxim De Cuyper, Celtic new boy Arne Engels and Borussia Dortmund teenager Julien Duranville all made an appearance.
Without Lukaku available, Manchester City pair Kevin De Bruyne and Jeremy Doku will again join forces in support of lone striker Lois Openda up front.
France possible starting lineup:Maignan; Kounde, Saliba, Konate, T. Hernandez; Kante, Zaire-Emery; Dembele, Griezmann, Barcola; Mbappe
Belgium possible starting lineup:Casteels; Castagne, Faes, Theate, De Cuyper; Onana, Tielemans; Bakayoko, De Bruyne, Doku; Openda
While Belgium occasionally sparkled in their Nations League opener, they still look shaky at the back: Kylian Mbappe and co should capitalise on any mistakes. For data analysis of the most likely results, scorelines and more for this match please click here.
