France Stage Dramatic Late Comeback to Beat Belgium 4-1

France delivered an extraordinary late assault to overturn a one-goal deficit and thrash rivals Belgium 4-1 at the Stade de France on Monday, October 5, 2026.

Trailing to a 35th-minute strike by Dodi Lukébakio, head coach Zinedine Zidane turned to his bench past the hour mark—a tactical roll of the dice that yielded immediate dividends.

In a blistering 14-minute rampage starting in the 77th minute, substitutes Désiré Doué, Rayan Cherki, and Michael Olise scored four unanswered goals to preserve France’s unbeaten run in Nations League Group A1 and earn Zidane his maiden home win at the helm.

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Belgium Strike First as Lukébakio Capitalizes France scored four goals within a frantic 14-minute stretch. Photo courtesy. For over an hour, the Red Devils appeared set to secure their first competitive away victory over France in 45 years.

Belgium broke the deadlock in the 35th minute when midfielder Roméo Lavia split the French defense with a searching long pass.

Dodi Lukébakio sprinted clear of his marker to slide a calm finish past debutant goalkeeper Guillaume Restes.

Despite commanding 60% of possession and generating 22 shot attempts across the match, France struggled during the opening period to penetrate Belgium’s organized low block.

Debutant Belgian goalkeeper Maarten Vandevoordt delivered several key saves, denying early efforts from Bradley Barcola and Ousmane Dembélé to keep the visitors ahead at the interval.

┌───────────────────────────────────────────────────────────┐ │ FRANCE’S 14-MINUTE BLITZ │ ├──────────────────────┬────────────────────────────────────┤ │ 77′ Désiré Doué │ Equalizer via low drive │ │ 81′ Rayan Cherki │ Go-ahead strike off Olise setup │ │ 88′ Michael Olise │ Third goal caps counter-attack │ │ 90+1′ Michael Olise │ Stoppage-time second seals 4-1 win │ └──────────────────────┴────────────────────────────────────┘ Second-Half Substitutes Trigger Unstoppable Turnaround Substitutes Michael Olise and Désiré Doué completely transformed the contest. Photo courtesy. The narrative shifted dramatically following Zidane’s second-half adjustments.

Introducing Michael Olise, Rayan Cherki, and Lucas Da Cunha in quick succession, France flooded the attacking third with pace and verticality.

The breakthrough arrived in the 77th minute when 21-year-old Désiré Doué unleashed a low strike from the edge of the penalty box into the bottom corner.

Four minutes later, Doué turned provider, linking up with Olise before finding Rayan Cherki, who swept home to give France a 2-1 lead.

┌────────────────┐ │ Zidane Subs │ └───────┬────────┘ │ (60′-71′) ┌───────────────────┼───────────────────┐ ▼ ▼ ▼ Michael Olise Désiré Doué Rayan Cherki 2 Goals, 1 Assist 1 Goal, 2 Assists 1 Goal Olise then took full command of the closing minutes.

The Bayern Munich winger converted a neat pass from Doué in the 88th minute before adding his second of the night in stoppage time to complete the 4-1 rout.

“What Olise and Doué did when they came on was simply exceptional,” Zidane remarked in his post-match press conference. “We needed energy, efficiency, and directness, and the response from the entire squad was top class.”

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The victory solidifies France’s position at the summit of Nations League Group A1 with 10 points from four matches.

Belgium remain third on six points, trailing second-placed Italy.

The international campaign resumes in November 2026, when France travel to face Italy in Milan before closing out the group phase on home soil against Turkey.

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