On Monday, 9 October, the French national team will play against Belgium in the second round of the Nations League. The French surprised bookmakers: the team lost to Italy in the opening match, although the guests were given odds of more than 6.00. Belgium confidently defeated Israel.

The French are clearly going through a difficult time. The national team has not played quality football under Didier Deschamps for a very long time. The crisis began even before the European Championship. The coach tried to diversify the starting line-up: young stars Barcola and Oliseh came out from the first minutes, without Giroud, Mbappe became the main centre forward.

France completely failed the match. The defeat was deserved just by the game. The team did not create chances even for one goal if you take xG. Italy had six shots on goal. France clearly has problems now not only with the game, but also with motivation. The team is under unpleasant psychological pressure: one more home defeat will seriously launch talk of Didier Deschamps' resignation. The Nations League is not the most prestigious tournament, but it is the quality of football and lack of progress that is causing the fears.

Belgium kicked off with a predictable win over Israel. Domenico Tedesco starts his second cycle with a star-studded team. Now there is every chance to build a championship-winning squad. In terms of names, Belgium is inferior to few in Europe. The quartet of attack Doku-De Bruyne-Lukebayo-Openda came out for the match against Israel. The attack played very beautifully: 26 shots, 9 on goal, a total advantage in all components.

Tedesco doesn't have big problems with the reserves either. For example, De Ketelare is not in the squad. The absence of Thibaut Courtois looks like a difficulty in the long run. Here the coach could not reconcile with the Real Madrid goalkeeper. The first number one became Kun Castells.

Belgium will definitely have chances for first place in this group. The team on the game does not look weaker than France. The teams have recently met at the European Championship. In many ways, the Belgians lacked luck to pass further. In a relatively equal match with a slight advantage France decided everything by a ricochet. Now the odds on Belgium from bookmakers - are more than 5.00. It is a bit strange to expect such a quick transformation from France. It is not excluded that Deschamps will decide to use several reserves, given the depth of the squad. Mbappe is clearly in need of a rest.

The match may well turn out to be an effective one. It is logical for Belgium to play bolder than they did at the European Championship. Still, there is a margin for error. The odds on the total are still equal, but a correction is possible on the day of the game.