No Mbappe, no problem. Zidane’s France face Van Bommel’s Belgium

Who: Belgium vs France
What: UEFA Nations League ۲۰۲۶-۲۷, Group A۱ match
Where: King Baudouin Stadium, Brussels, Belgium
When: Monday, September ۲۸, at ۷:۴۵pm (۱۸:۴۵ GMT)
How to follow: Al Jazeera Sport will bring you all the build-up and live updates from ۱۵:۴۵ GMT

Captain Kylian Mbappe did his part by giving France the winning start they aimed for in the ۲۰۲۶-۲۷ UEFA Nations League, but a knee injury will keep him out of action when the two-time world champions face Belgium on Monday.

Mbappe’s early second-half strike in France’s ۱-۰ win over Turkiye in the opening match was marred by his injury, and the country’s leading scorer will be out of action for two weeks.

The visitors have no shortage of talent and goal-scoring skills, though, as the talented trio of Michael Olise, Ousmane Dembele and Desire Doue will take responsibility in front of goal on match day two of the competition.

Their neighbours, Belgium, bolstered by the experienced Kevin De Bruyne, also made a winning start by beating Italy ۲-۰ in Rome and will no doubt pose a tough challenge for the French visitors.

Interestingly, Monday’s contest will see new coaches in the hot seat, with former Dutch international Mark van Bommel taking over the reins at Belgium and the legendary Zinedine Zidane, a former France midfielder, returning to the coaching job.

What is the UEFA Nations League?

The UEFA Nations League was founded in ۲۰۱۸ to reduce the number of meaningless friendlies and give nations competitive matches against top-ranked teams.

In this competition, countries from across Europe participate in a league structure, which features promotion and relegation.

When did Belgium and France last meet?

They last met in a Nations League group encounter in October ۲۰۲۴, with Randal Kolo Muani’s double giving France a ۲-۱ win over Belgium.

Belgium vs France: Head-to-head

• Matches: ۷۸
• Belgium wins: ۳۰
• France wins: ۲۹
• Draws: ۱۹

Belgium vs France: Form guide

(Last five games, latest results first)

Belgium: W-L-W-W-W

France: W-W-L-L-W

Who are the top players to watch?

De Bruyne and Diego Moreira (Belgium): Veteran De Bruyne, known for pulling the strings in midfield, grabbed the limelight in the last game with his assist and man-of-the-match performance. Fans should also watch out for Diego Moreira on the left wing following his three goals in as many league games for AC Milan this term.

Olise and Rayan Cherki (France): Winger Olise was the man of the match last time out and has made a flying start at Bayern Munich this season with eight goals and four assists in seven matches across all competitions. Furthermore, Rayan Cherki has also found the net for his club, Manchester City, bagging four goals and two assists.

What have the coaches said?

Zinedine Zidane (France): “There will be changes. How many? You’ll see. We knew we’d have four matches in such a short time, so we’re going to rotate the squad a little. The most important thing is to get to know each other.”

Mark van Bommel (Belgium): “It is special to coach against someone like that. He [Zidane] was an exceptional footballer, and I played against him once, with Barcelona against Real Madrid. If a dribbling move is named after you, then you must have done pretty well. He is a good coach too; that’s clear.”

Team news and predicted lineup

Belgium

They have two injuries in the squad – winger Leandro Trossard has a heel injury and goalkeeper Mike Penders has a muscle issue.

Probable Belgium XI: Senne Lammens; Timothy Castagne, Nathan Ngoy, Brandon Mechele, Maxim De Cuyper; Nicolas Raskin; Dodi Lukebakio, Kevin De Bruyne, Youri Tielemans, Diego Moreira; Charles De Ketelaere

France

Mbappe is the highest-profile international missing from the squad for Monday’s game, with the Real Madrid striker sidelined with a knee injury until mid-October. Central midfielder Warren Zaire-Emery is also out with a thigh injury, while defensive midfielder Matteo Guendouzi is suspended.

Probable France XI: Mike Maignan; Jules Kounde, Dayot Upamecano, Maxence Lacroix, Andy Diouf; Rayan Cherki, Manu Kone, Adrien Rabiot; Michael Olise, Desire Doue, Ousmane Dembele

Belgium vs France: TV channel, livestreaming

• Belgium: VTM GO
• France: la chaine L’Equipe, TF۱+
• United Kingdom: Prime Video UK
• United States: FOX Sports, FuboTV, ViX
• India: Sony Sports Network
• Middle East and North Africa: beIN SPORTS
• South Africa: DStv Stream

You can find your regional broadcaster on UEFA’s official broadcaster listing.