France Returns from Brussels with a Decisive Win, Italy Rallies with Four Goals

The French national team, coached by former star midfielder Zinedine Zidane, secured a hard-fought 1-0 victory over Belgium in their own backyard. Meanwhile, Italy bounced back from their opening defeat by thrashing Turkey 4-1 on Turkish soil, in the second round of Group 1 in the first tier of the UEFA Nations League.

At the King Baudouin Stadium in Brussels, substitute Michael Olise handed coach Zidane his second victory since taking charge, succeeding Didier Deschayes. Just 12 minutes after coming on, Olise burst down the right flank from the center of the pitch, cut inside, and curled a perfect shot with his left foot from 16 meters out, beating goalkeeper Simon Mignolet (88th minute).

With this win, France topped their group with a perfect record of six points from two matches, having started their campaign with a goal from Kylian Mbappe, who was substituted due to injury.

Belgium sits in second place with three points, level with Italy, who avenged their opening loss to the "Red Devils" with a comprehensive 4-1 victory over Turkey in their own territory.

In a clash of struggling teams, after Turkey also fell to France (0-1), new-again coach Roberto Mancini secured his first win with the national team. Mancini returned to manage Italy after leading them to the 2021 European Championship title and his sudden departure to coach Saudi Arabia.

The outcome of the match was decided in the first half, as Italy surprised the home side with an early goal. Inter Milan defender Alessandro Bastoni scored with a precise strike from the penalty area in the ninth minute.

The visitors continued their attacking prowess to make it 2-0, with Davide Frattesi finishing a shot from Michael Kayode that slipped past goalkeeper Altay Bayindir (22nd minute), before Kayode himself scored the third goal (27th minute).

The Video Assistant Referee (VAR) disallowed a second goal for Baris (57th minute), which could have revived Turkey's hopes of a comeback.

Mancini breathed a sigh of relief at the start of his tenure, aiming to rescue the four-time World Cup champions after failing to qualify for the World Cup finals in three consecutive campaigns and suffering three defeats in their last four official matches, prior to the win over Turkey.

Teammates of Arda Güler failed to maintain their strong home record. Before yesterday's loss, they had won nine of their last 13 matches played in front of their home crowd in both friendly and official games.

French national team coach Zinedine Zidane praised Michael Olise's "exceptional attack" when the Bayern Munich player, who scored the winning goal against host Belgium (1-0) in Brussels on Tuesday in the second round of the first tier of the UEFA Nations League, burst from the center of the pitch after coming on for Liverpool's Bradley Barcola just 11 minutes earlier. Olise finished the move with a low shot from the edge of the box (88th minute).

Overjoyed by the performance of the German club player, Zidane ran along the touchline and kicked a ball placed in front of him.

Smiling broadly, Zidane said, "I followed Michael's run and felt he would dribble past his marker. He executed an exceptional attack. Then I saw the ball in front of me, and I couldn't resist shooting. It's ridiculous."

Olise's goal gave Zidane his second victory at the beginning of his long-awaited tenure as head coach of the French national team.

Vincenzo Montella, head coach of the Turkish national football team, said he “did not expect” such an angry reaction from his fans following the team’s heavy defeat to visiting Italy, “after everything these players have contributed over the past three years.”

Montella said, “The first half-hour is certainly a period that must be forgotten. Playing every three days at this level requires a certain type of focus and experience that we currently lack. Two years ago, we were playing in the third tier of the Nations League, and we won promotion to the second tier in the previous edition of the competition, so it is clear that we need to improve in this regard.”

Even before the end of the first half, chants calling for the resignation of Montella and the president of the Turkish Football Federation echoed through Bursa, the host city of the match.

Montella acknowledged at the end of his remarks: “They also booed the players after the first goal, which they did not deserve. The atmosphere was wonderful before the match, and I did not expect such a swift backlash, given everything these players have contributed over the past three years.”