Game is over and the final score is Belgium 1-2 France. Here is the match report.
2024/2025 UEFA Nations League
1-2
Match Events
0' The match is about to start!
1' Tielemans' right footed shot is saved in the centre of the goal!
7' Yellow Card! Digne booked for a bad foul to Doku!
11' Openda fails to convert Doku's brilliant pass!
12' Loïs Openda shoots from right side of the six-yard box but misses to the right!
16' Barcola's header hits the side netting!
18' Leandro Trossard's left footed shot from the left side of the box is saved!
23' Penalty Missed! Youri Tielemans' right-footed shot is just a bit too high!
35' Penalty Goal! Muani converts penalty to bottom left corner! Belgium 0-1 France
48' GOAL! Loïs Openda's header from very close range! Belgium 1-1 France
48' Jules Koundé right footed shot from outside the box is just a bit too high!
52' Dembélé left footed shot from outside the box is close but misses to the left!
58' Kone scores but no goal due to Muani's handball before!
62' GOAL! Randal Kolo Muani header puts France back in the lead! Belgium 1-2 France
71' Trossard left footed shot from the left side of the box misses to the right!
76' Second Yellow Card! Aurélien Tchouaméni sent off for a bad foul!
Match Report
Randal Kolo Muani's brace was enough to see 10-man France claim an important 2-1 triumph over Belgium in their Nations League Group A2 clash on Monday.
Kolo Muani netted either side of Lois Openda's first-half header before the visitors saw out the remaining 14 minutes after Aurelien Tchouameni's dismissal for two bookable offences.
Belgium had the opportunity to take the lead when William Saliba's untimely slip wiped out Openda, only for Youri Tielemans to blaze his spot-kick over the crossbar.
Didier Deschamps' side made no such mistake from 12 yards soon after, with Kolo Muani converting after Wout Faes' handball to hand France the lead in the 34th minute.
Openda restored parity on the stroke of half-time, nodding Timothy Castagne's cross beyond Mike Maignan, only for Kolo Muani to edge France back into the lead when rising highest to power a header underneath the grasp of Koen Casteels just past the hour.
Belgium were handed a late lifeline in their attempts to snatch a point when France's stand-in captain Tchouameni received a second yellow card for a foul on Tielemans, yet the visitors held on for an important win.
Domenico Tedesco's side sit five points behind France and six adrift of leaders Italy with two games remaining after this significant blow to their top-two hopes in Brussels.
1 - Aurélien Tchouaméni est le 1er joueur de l'équipe de France exclu depuis Jules Koundé en septembre 2021 (v Bosnie), et le 1er en tant que capitaine au coup d'envoi depuis Zinedine Zidane en finale du Mondial 2006. Douloureux. pic.twitter.com/0URIj0S8DV
— OptaJean (@OptaJean) October 14, 2024
Data Debrief: Kolo Muani Belgium's nemesis once again
Kolo Muani continued his impressive streak for France in the Nations League here, notching his third goal of the competition, all of which have come against Belgium.
The Paris Saint-Germain striker ended the contest as Les Bleus' biggest attacking threat, registering an expected goals (xG) tally of 0.86 of France's 1.42 total.
Tchouameni, however, endured a night to forget in Belgium as his red saw him become the first player since Jules Kounde in September 2021 to be sent off for France, and the first as Les Bleus' captain at kick-off since Zinedine Zidane in the 2006 World Cup final.
Line-ups
Belgium XI: Casteels, Trossard, Tielemans, Castagne, Wout Faes, Mangala, Openda, De Ketelaere, Jérémy Doku, Zeno Debast, Arthur Theate
Subs: Dodi Lukébakio, Sebastiaan Bornauw, Ortwin De Wolf, Cyril Ngonge, Maarten Vandevoordt, Maxim De Cuyper, Aster Vranckx, Arne Engels, Johan Bakayoko, Malick Fofana, Matte Smets
France XI: Digne, Maignan, Dembele, Konate, Kounde, Guendouzi, Aurélien Tchouaméni, Muani, William Saliba, Manu Koné, Bradley Barcola
Subs: Areola, Jonathan Clauss, Brice Samba, Thuram, Theo, Nkunku, Wesley Fofana, Youssouf Fofana, Loïc Badé, Eduardo Camavinga, Michael Olise, Warren Zaïre-Emery