France Top Belgium in Tense Nations League Showdown
France edged Belgium 2-1 in a thrilling UEFA Nations League show-piece, with France's Randal Kolo Muani working double the magic by scoring twice to bring victory from under his teammate's nose, as the team struggled to be ahead without him.
In an eventful first half, Kolo Muani played in place of Kylian Mbappe, who had missed out on this match.
Belgium had a chance to get ahead early, but it missed Youri Tielemans's penalty attempt after William Saliba brought down Lois Openda. France responded with a Kolo Muani cool conversion of a penalty in the 35th minute after Wout Faes had handled the ball in the box for those frantic first 45 minutes at the King Baudouin Stadium in Belgium.
As if trying to get an equal footing on the scoreboard, Belgium levelled matters up in the last minutes of the first half with a headed goal from Openda, who met Timothy Castagne's cross, balancing the score to 1-1.
Muani Lands the Winning Goal
Kolo Muani was again the star in the second half. He headed in Lucas Digne's cross in the 62nd minute to give France the lead. France then played the last minutes of the game with 10 men as Aurelien Tchouameni had been sent off with a red card for collecting his second yellow.
Coach Deschamps Hails Kolo Muani
The manager of France, Didier Deschamps, praised Kolo Muani after the match as, "Randal has been fantastic.
He is growing in confidence and showing his ability to perform in big games."
Mbappe's Absence and Off-Field Drama
France coped very well without injured star player Kylian Mbappe, but controversy instead followed their win over Sweden when word broke of a legal investigation against Mbappe back in Sweden. Mbappe denied the rumor through social media, labeling it "fake news. "
Group Standings and What's Next
France is now second in Group A2, sitting with nine points, one point behind Italy. Belgium remains third, some five points adrift. The final group games come next month, and France hopes to qualify directly for the quarter-finals.
With inputs from agencies
Image Source: Multiple agencies
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