Despite starting star forward Kylian Mbappé on the bench, France secured another victory over Belgium in the UEFA Nations League on Monday.

Two of Mbappé’s former Paris Saint-Germain teammates, Randal Kolo Muani and Ousmane Dembélé, scored with powerful strikes on either side of half-time, sealing a 2-0 win in Lyon.

The victory helped France recover ground in the top-tier Nations League group after a 3-1 defeat to Italy in Paris on Friday. On the same day, Italy defeated Israel 2-1, courtesy of goals from Davide Frattesi and Moise Kean, and now lead the four-team group.

Mbappé was rested at the start, despite France aiming to avoid a third consecutive loss, just two months after their semi-final exit at the European Championship to eventual champions Spain.

The new Real Madrid star had minimal pre-season preparation following Euro 2024 and played the full match against Italy. Manager Didier Deschamps opted to ease him in against Belgium, bringing his captain on in the 67th minute to replace Kolo Muani.

France extended their winning streak over Belgium to four matches in the Mbappé era. Beginning with the 2018 FIFA World Cup semi-final, Les Bleus have since eliminated Belgium in the 2021 Nations League semi-finals and in the Euro 2024 round of 16.

Monday’s game fell on the 43rd anniversary of France’s last competitive defeat to Belgium, which took place in Brussels during a World Cup qualifier in 1981.

Belgium started with fierce intent, and France endured a wave of early attacks in an increasingly tense atmosphere. Belgian forward Loïs Openda was central to much of the action and several heated exchanges.

“Belgium caused us plenty of problems, especially in the first 25 minutes,” Deschamps admitted.

France took the lead in the 30th minute when Kolo Muani fired home from close range after goalkeeper Koen Casteels parried a weak, bouncing effort from Dembélé.

Dembélé was more decisive in the 57th minute, cutting in from the right side of the penalty area to score with a rising left-footed strike. A smiling Mbappé was among the substitutes who joined the celebrations, lifting Dembélé to his feet.

Elsewhere, Erling Haaland scored an 80th-minute winner in Norway’s 2-1 triumph over Austria, while Slovenian star Benjamin Šeško netted a hat-trick in a 3-0 victory against Kazakhstan. Haaland and Šeško were once clubmates at Salzburg in Austria.

Kerem Aktürkoğlu also notched a hat-trick for Türkiye in a 3-1 win over Iceland, with his first goal coming just two minutes into the match. His recent transfer from Galatasaray to Benfica has restored his opportunity to compete in the Champions League this season.

In Montenegro, Wales scored twice within the first three minutes and held on for a rain-soaked 2-1 win. Harry Wilson netted the second with a dipping 25-metre strike.

It was a night for early goals as Romania took a fourth-minute lead in a 3-1 victory over Lithuania in third-tier Group 2. Meanwhile, Kosovo opened the scoring in Cyprus after nine minutes, with Vedat Muriqi adding a second soon after in a 4-0 rout.