Italy Hold 10-Man France in Nations League Thriller; Northern Ireland Stun Ukraine
Italy Hold 10-Man France in Nations League Thriller; Northern Ireland Stun Ukraine
Dramatic night in the Nations League! Italy snatch a draw against 10-man France, Belgium dominate Turkey, and Northern Ireland pull off a stunning 3-0 victory against Ukraine. Get all the highlights here!
A thrilling night across Europe's Nations League saw Italy salvage a crucial draw against 10-man France, while Northern Ireland delivered a stunning performance to boost their promotion hopes. At the Stade de France, Zinedine Zidane's first home game in charge ended in a 1-1 stalemate with Italy.
French goalkeeper Gianluigi Donnarumma was the hero for the visitors, making a string of incredible saves to deny France, who were reduced to 10 men late in the game after Dayot Upamecano's dismissal.
Michael Olise put France ahead in the 55th minute with a curling shot off the crossbar.
However, poor defending allowed Italy's Alessandro Bastoni to equalize midway through the second half, clipping a low shot inside the right post.
Donnarumma continued his heroics, denying Ousmane Dembélé, Désiré Doué, Adrien Rabiot, and crucially, Eduardo Camavinga in stoppage time to secure a point for Italy. Despite the draw, France remain at the top of Group A1, one point ahead of Belgium, who delivered a dominant 3-0 home win over bottom-placed Turkey in Liège.
Kevin De Bruyne, playing his 127th match for the Red Devils, scored an impressive double, opening the scoring with a cool finish and adding a second with a curled effort into the top corner. Belgium's all-time record goalscorer, Romelu Lukaku, sealed the victory with a third goal in the 76th minute.
Meanwhile, in League B, Northern Ireland pulled off a sensational 3-0 victory against Ukraine in Trnava, Slovakia.
This emphatic win propelled them to the top of their group and significantly boosted their chances for promotion to the top tier. Ciaron Brown, the only player in Michael O'Neill's starting lineup over 24, was the star of the show, bagging two goals. Isaac Price also found the net, contributing to a memorable away win that puts Northern Ireland on seven points from three games, still yet to concede a goal.
