Woeful Mbappe-less France can't beat Israel, Italy send Belgium to the verge of exit
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Reading Time: 2min | Fri. 15.11.24. | 01:20
Just a single goal in these two games
After Spain and Germany, now we've got two more UEFA Nations League quarter-finalists. Italy defeated Belgium 1-0 in Brussels, and France couldn't beat Israel at home, 0-0. A point was enough for Didier Deschamps' side to get into the knockout stage.
There wasn't much excitement in either game. Unlike a 2-2 draw in Rome a month ago, when Belgium managed to bounce back from a two-goal deficit, this time, Gli Azzurri didn't allow their rival any sort of comeback.
SANDRO TONALI SCORES HIS FIRST GOAL FOR ITALY! 🇮🇹⚽️ #NUFC pic.twitter.com/9jBOTnUnYP
— Magpie Media (@MagpieMediaX) November 14, 2024
Sandro Tonali scored his first-ever goal for the national side in his 20th appearance for Italy, and that was just enough for the win. Interestingly, 52 years have passed since their first official encounter, and Belgium still hasn't celebrated a single non-friendly win against Italy.
Luciano Spalletti's boys will take on France in Milan in three days. They have defeated Les Bleus 3-1 in September, and are three points above France ahead of that ultimate group game. Therefore, it's reasonable to expect Italy to win the group and avoid facing other group winners in the quarter-final.
Without their top star, Kylian Mbappe, who was allowed to miss these two Nations League games, Les Bleus did dominate the game but just couldn't unlock Israel's defensive doors.
UEFA NATIONS LEAGUE - GROUP STAGE
Division A
Thursday
Belgium - Italy 0-1 (0-1)
/Tonali 11/
France - Israel 0-0
Friday
22.45: (4.70) Denmark (3.50) Spain (1.80)
22.45: (1.27) Portugal (5.90) Poland (10.5)
22.45: (3.40) Scotland (3.40) Croatia (2.15)
22.45: (1.85) Switzerland (3.60) Serbia (4.80)
Saturday
22.45: (1.15) Germany (8.00) B&H (16.0)
22.45: (1.40) Netherlands (4.70) Hungary (8.00)
Sunday
22.45: (3.40) Italy (3.35) France (2.30)
Division B
Thursday
Kazakhstan - Austria 0-2 (0-2)
/Baumgartner 15, Gregoritsch 25/
Greece - England 0-3 (0-1)
/Watkins 7, Vlachodimos 78 og, Jones 83/
R.Ireland - Finland 1-0 (1-0)
/Ferguson 45/
Slovenia - Norway 1-4 (1-2)
/Sesko 21 pen - Nusa 4, 59, Haaland 45, Hauge 82/
Saturday
20.00: (2.50) Georgia (3.25) Ukraine (2.90)
20.00: (2.50) Montenegro (3.25) Iceland (2.90)
20.00: (1.77) Turkey (3.50) Wales (4.90)
22.45: (3.20) Albania (3.30) Czech R. (2.30)
Sunday
20.00: (1.22) England (6.25) R.Ireland (14.0)
***odds are subject to change***
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