Belgium vs France: Doue's shot hits the crossbar after a brilliant run

Desire Doue came close to scoring with a shot against the crossbar as France faced Belgium in the Nations League at King Baudouin Stadium in Brussels.

The Paris Saint-Germain winger, Doue, displayed exceptional ball control and agility, navigating through Belgium's defense before firing a shot that struck the woodwork. Manchester United goalkeeper Senne Lammens was in goal for Belgium.

France aimed for consecutive wins to open their campaign, following a 1-0 victory against Turkey. However, their captain Kylian Mbappe is sidelined for the initial four matches due to an injury sustained during the previous game.

Belgium Team vs France

Belgium made two alterations to their lineup from the match in Rome. Joaquin Seys and Romeo Lavia were brought in, with Lavia making his full debut, replacing Maxim De Cuyper and Nicolas Raskin.

Belgium: Senne Lammens, Brandon Mechele, Romeo Lavia, Kevin De Bruyne, Youri Tielemans, Mika Godts, Nathan Ngoy, Charles De Ketelaere, Joaquin Seys, Diego Moreira, Timothy Castagne

Substitutes: Maarten Vandevoordt, Zeno Debast, Koni De Winter, Maxim De Cuyper, Romelu Lukaku, Lois Openda, Jari De Busser, Dodi Lukebakio, Mandela Keita, Hans Vanaken, Matias Fernandez-Pardo, Nicolas Raskin

France Team vs Belgium in Nations League

Mike Maignan, the goalkeeper, and defender Maxence Lacroix were the only players retained in the starting eleven from France's win against Turkey.

France: Mike Maignan, Pierre Kalulu, Eduardo Camavinga, Bradley Barcola, Andy Diouf, Maxence Lacroix, Maghnes Akliouche, Esteban Lepaul, Desire Doue, Lucas Da Cunha, Jeremy Jacquet

Substitutes: Guillaume Restes, Adrien Truffert, Dayot Upamecano, Jules Kounde, Ousmane Dembele, Manu Kone, Rayan Cherki, Michael Olise, Adrien Rabiot, Leny Yoro, Jean Butez

Belgium vs France Nations League Stats

Belgium sought their first home win against France in 45 years, since a 2-0 victory in World Cup qualifying.
Their last victory over France was a 4-3 friendly win in Paris in June 2015, featuring current midfielder Youri Tielemans.
In 78 previous encounters, Belgium holds 30 wins to France's 29, with 19 draws. Belgium has scored 163 goals to France's 136.
Robert de Veen, who played for Belgium from 1906 to 1913, remains the fixture's all-time top scorer with 13 goals.
Belgium's home record against France is 20 wins, 8 draws, and 10 losses in 38 matches, with a 91-51 goal advantage. Their last competitive home loss in this fixture was in 2024.
France has won the last five meetings by an aggregate score of 9-3. The most recent of these, a 2-1 win in Brussels in the Nations League in October 2024, was in Belgium.
This marked France's 945th match since 1904, with a record of 481 wins, 195 draws, and 268 defeats, scoring 1,711 goals and conceding 1,272.
Mbappe leads France's all-time scoring list with 67 goals. His appearance against Turkey made him their eighth most-capped player, level with Patrick Vieira.
Each of France's last 10 goals have been scored after the 47th minute, with Mbappe contributing five and Ousmane Dembele two, both scored after the 65th minute.
France has scored at least twice in five of their last seven Nations League away games. They failed to do so in Turkey and in a 2-0 loss to Croatia in Split in March 2025, though they won the return match and advanced on penalties.