Late substitute strikes in 88th minute to give Zidane’s side a second successive 1–0 victory
By Andalo Christine Ingutia
Michael Olise scored with two minutes remaining to give France a 1–0 victory over Belgium yesterday and maintain Zinédine Zidane’s perfect start as the national team’s manager in the UEFA Nations League.
The Bayern Munich forward came off the bench in the closing stages and punished a defensive lapse to send France to the top of Group A1. The win followed their earlier 1–0 victory over Turkey and stretched their unbeaten competitive run against Belgium to six matches. For Zidane, it was two games, two clean sheets and six points.
Belgium had looked capable of ending that record for much of the contest. Domenico Tedesco’s side defended with discipline, held their shape and pressed France when the opportunity arose, all of it without their talisman Kevin De Bruyne, who was absent through injury.
France were similarly short-handed. Captain Kylian Mbappé missed the match through injury, forcing Zidane to pair Bradley Barcola with Marcus Thuram in attack. Behind them, Eduardo Camavinga, Aurélien Tchouaméni and Warren Zaïre-Emery provided the midfield platform on which France’s best football tends to be built.
For long stretches the match was tight. Belgium stayed organised and France found it difficult to create clear openings against a compact defensive block. The game looked destined for a draw.
Zidane turned to his bench. Olise and Randal Kolo Muani came on to inject energy and directness into an attack that had grown patient to the point of predictability. Within minutes, the change had worked. Kolo Muani drove towards the penalty area and rolled a low cross into Olise’s path. The forward took one touch and finished crisply. The stadium barely had time to process what had happened before the ball was in the net.
Belgium pushed for an equaliser through four minutes of added time, throwing men forward and trying to find a way through. France’s defence, disciplined throughout the evening, held firm without alarm.
Zidane was measured but clearly satisfied at his post-match press conference. “Belgium are a very difficult team to break down at home, and they played with a very compact block,” he said. “But we kept our composure, we looked after the ball, and the players who came off the bench made the exact impact we needed. Michael Olise took his chance beautifully.”
It was the kind of quote that reflected what Zidane is building. France under his management look organised, difficult to score against and capable of finding a winning moment when the game demands one. It is an unglamorous formula in some respects, but it is working.
For Belgium, the defeat deepens an uncomfortable stretch. Without De Bruyne’s creative control in the middle of the park, they struggled to build any sustained attacking threat. Winger Jérémy Doku provided their most dangerous moments but found little support. Belgium failed to register a single shot on target in the entire second half, a statistic that speaks plainly about where their problems lie and how much work Tedesco faces in the week ahead.
The two nations will meet again next Monday, October 5, at the Stade de France in Paris. The fixture arrives quickly, and Belgium will need to find answers to questions that yesterday’s performance raised but did not resolve. Staying compact and absorbing pressure is a reasonable strategy away from home. Doing the same on the road, while also needing to score, is a far harder proposition.
France, by contrast, travel home with momentum, full points and the quiet confidence of a team that is beginning to look like itself. Zidane has said little about his ambitions for the group, but the results are doing the talking. Two matches in Group A1, two victories, no goals conceded.
Whether Belgium can arrest the slide and make next Monday’s return fixture competitive is the question that will occupy Tedesco’s preparations for the rest of the week.
France will not be standing still.
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