Dramatic 3-2 Win Over Belgium, France Advance To UEFA Nations League Final

Kylian Mbappe (Twitter @k.mbappe)

JAKARTA - The French national team advanced to the UEFA Nations League final after a dramatic 3-2 win over Belgium at the Allianz Stadium, Turin on Friday morning.

Launching Antara, Les Blues had trailed by two goals in the first half before finally being able to turn things around and score three goals in the second half.

Two Belgian goals were scored by Yannick Carrasco and Romelu Lukaku. Meanwhile, three French goals were contributed by Karim Benzema, Kylian Mbappe and Theo Hernandez each.

France are in the UEFA Nations League final after a completely crazy match (🇧🇪2-3🇫🇷) !!! #FiersdetreBleus pic.twitter.com/JH6s15yIar

— French Team (@FrenchTeam) October 7, 2021

Belgium opened the game with a golden opportunity in the 3rd minute, Kevin De Bruyne almost gave Belgium the lead had the ball not been pushed over by French goalkeeper Hugo Lloris.

Belgium broke the deadlock in the 37th minute. Yannick Carrasco stabbed in from the left side of the box before unleashing a low shot that slid into the French goal. Belgium lead 1-0.

Four minutes later, Belgium doubled their lead. Romelu Lukaku received a pass from Kevin De Bruyne, before shooting the ball from a tight angle that Lloris failed to block. Score 2-0 to Belgium.

There were no additional goals until halftime.

In the second half, France tried to catch up and paid off in the 62nd minute.

Karim Benzema gets feedback from Kylian Mbappe in the penalty box. He then rounded one of the Belgians before releasing the ball which Thibaut Courtois couldn't stop. 1-2 for France.

France had a golden opportunity to equalize after being awarded a penalty in the 67th minute. Youri Tielemans fouled Antoine Griezmann in the box and the referee decided to point to the spot after watching the VAR replay.

Mbappe, who came forward as the executor, directed the ball into the top left corner without being denied by Thibaut Courtois. The score becomes 2-2.

Lukaku had scored the second goal in the 86th minute. The Chelsea striker got a cross from Carrasco, before successfully putting it into the net.

However, VAR annulled Belgium's third goal because Lukaku was judged to have been in an offside position when he received a pass from Carrasco. The position remains 2-2.

France made a dramatic comeback in the 90th minute. Theo Hernandez became the hero of his team's victory after releasing a hard shot in the penalty box that slid into the Belgian goal. The score 3-2 for France lasted until the game was over.

France will face Spain in the 2021 UEFA Nations League final, which will take place on October 10 at the San Siro.

Lineup:

Belgium (3-4-3): Thibaut Courtois; Toby Alderweireld, Jason Denayer, Jan Vertonghen; Timothy Castagne (90' Michy Batshuayi), Axel Witsel, Youri Tielemans (70' Hans Vanaken), Yannick Carrasco; Kevin De Bruyne, Romelu Lukaku, Eden Hazard (74' Leandro Trossard).

France (3-4-1-2): Hugo Lloris; Jules Kunde, Raphael Varane, Lucas Hernandez; Benjamin Pavard (75' Leo Dubois), Paul Pogba, Adrien Rabiot (75' Aurelien Tchouameni), Theo Hernandez; Antoine Griezmann; Karim Benzema (90' Jordan Veretout), Kylian Mbappe.