Nations League: France beat Türkiye to secure qualification

France ended the Nations League group stage with a win over Türkiye (2-1) in Bordeaux. The victory saw Zinédine Zidane’s side finish top of their group and secure qualification for the quarter-finals.

Topçu opens the scoring, Kroupi makes his mark

France struggled for a long time to break down the Turkish defence and goalkeeper Berke Özer. The Blues had to wait until the 49th minute to take the lead. From a Rayan Cherki corner, Adrien Rabiot headed the ball towards goal, prompting Eren Topçu to divert it into his own net. Türkiye thought they had equalised five minutes later. Arda Güler found the net, but his goal was ruled out for offside following a VAR review.

Coming on in the 62nd minute, Eli Kroupi then gave France some breathing room. In the 80th minute, the striker latched onto a pass from Rayan Cherki to score his first goal for France and make it 2-0.

Türkiye reignite the contest late on

Just as the Blues appeared to be cruising to victory, Arda Bardakci pulled one back in the 90th minute. The Turkish defender headed home from a corner to put France under pressure again. The closing stages were therefore more tense than expected, but Zinédine Zidane’s side managed to hold on to their lead until the final whistle.

The victory means France finish top of their group and secure their place in the quarter-finals, scheduled for the end of March. The statistics underline France’s control of the match: 61% possession, eight shots on target to Türkiye’s three, and 620 successful passes to 395. The Blues can now turn their attention to the knockout stage.

Aliou Toundé |

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