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Listen to the article3 min, read by a synthetic voice

In brief

  • Kevin De Bruyne scored in the 10th and 60th minutes before Romelu Lukaku added a 76th-minute goal to secure a 3-0 win over Turkey in Liège.

  • France stayed top of Group A1 with seven points after Alessandro Bastoni cancelled out Michael Olise's 55th-minute strike at Stade de France.

  • Robert Lewandowski scored three goals, including a 24th-minute penalty after Radu Dragusin was sent off, in Poland's 6-0 League B victory.

Photo: Steffen Prößdorf, CC BY-SA 4.0 (Wikimedia Commons, cropped). File photo, 2021
How it came to this
  1. 60th minuteDe Bruyne scores his second goal of the night to double Belgium's lead
  2. 63rd minuteEdin Džeko receives an honor guard as he is subbed off in his final international match
  3. 76th minuteRomelu Lukaku scores Belgium's third goal against Turkey

Belgium sweeps Turkey in Liège

Kevin De Bruyne scored twice to guide Belgium to a 3-0 win against Turkey in their UEFA Nations League Group A1 fixture at Stade Sclessin in Liège. The 35-year-old midfielder opened the scoring in the tenth minute following a one-two with Dodi Lukébakio, before curling a second shot into the corner on the hour mark to reach 40 international goals in 127 caps. Turkey generated chances through Real Madrid midfielder Arda Güler, but Manchester United goalkeeper Senne Lammens stopped all three of his attempts on target during a fast-paced first half that produced ten Belgian attempts to Turkey's eight. Substitute striker Romelu Lukaku sealed the victory in the 76th minute, recording his 94th goal in 134 appearances for his national team after replacing Charles De Ketelaere.

Van Bommel assesses performance ahead of Paris trip

The victory moved Belgium to six points from three matches under manager Mark van Bommel, following an earlier 2-0 win in Italy and a 1-0 defeat to France in Brussels. Van Bommel started Hans Vanaken alongside De Bruyne and Youri Tielemans in midfield, while leaving Zeno Debast, Arthur Theate, and Kyriani Sabbe on the bench. Both De Bruyne and captain Tielemans received their second yellow cards of the campaign, which rules them out of Monday's fixture against France at the Stade de France. Speaking after the final whistle, Van Bommel reflected on the open tempo of the contest against Vincenzo Montella's squad.

“It is true that it looked like a ping-pong match. They also created quite a few opportunities. We could have lost. We mainly tried to control the match.”

Mark van Bommel, manager of the Belgium national football team

France held by Italy in Zidane home debut

In the other Group A1 match, France drew 1-1 against Italy at the Stade de France in manager Zinédine Zidane's first home game in charge. Michael Olise put the hosts ahead in the 55th minute with a 20-meter curling effort that went in off the crossbar. Italy equalized midway through the second half when central defender Alessandro Bastoni ran through the French defense to clip a low shot inside the right post. The result keeps France top of the group with seven points, followed by Belgium with six, Italy with four, and Turkey in fourth place with zero points after three consecutive defeats.

UEFA Nations League Group A1 standings after matchday 3pts
France7
Belgium6
Italy4
Turkey0
France
7 pts
Belgium
6 pts
Italy
4 pts
Turkey
0 pts

Data from the article text

Lewandowski hits three while Džeko finishes international career

Action across League B saw Robert Lewandowski score a hat trick during Poland's 6-0 victory over Romania. The 38-year-old Chicago Fire striker converted a 24th-minute penalty after Romanian defender Radu Dragusin received a straight red card for a foul inside the penalty area. Lewandowski added a second goal in the 47th minute from a Nicola Zalewski pass before completing his treble late in the match. Elsewhere in League B, Bosnia and Herzegovina captain Edin Džeko ended his 19-year international career during a 1-1 draw against Sweden. The 40-year-old forward, who debuted in June 2007, departed in the 63rd minute through an honor guard holding national records of 152 caps and 73 goals.

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Sources and context

  • De Morgenon 3 Oct at 11:18'Restant van de gouden generatie staat op': buitenlandse media genieten mee van glansprestatie van 'unieke artiest' Kevin De Bruyne
  • 7sur7on 3 Oct at 08:40Grand bonhomme", "il n'a rien perdu de sa superbe": la presse belge charmée par le retour en grâce du "king" De Bruyne
  • RTBFon 3 Oct at 06:07Van Bommel lance des énigmes, un joueur patauge, Ngoy en pleine bourre : 5 enseignements après Belgique - Turquie - RTBF Actus
  • BBCon 3 Oct at 00:11Türkiye galibiyeti Belçika medyasında nasıl yer buldu?
Kevin De Bruyne
Belgium national team midfielder and Napoli player
Robert Lewandowski
Poland national team forward and Chicago Fire striker
Mark van Bommel
Manager of the Belgium national football team
Edin Džeko
Former captain of the Bosnia and Herzegovina national football team
Zinédine Zidane
Manager of the France national football team
Romelu Lukaku
Belgium national team striker and Fenerbahçe forward
Michael Olise
France national team winger
Alessandro Bastoni
Italy national team central defender
Vincenzo Montella
Manager of the Turkey national football team

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First version on 1 Oct at 16:31, last change on 3 Oct at 12:06.

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Text generated by AI from the reports of the publishers listed and checked automatically, with no human editor. How Pollar is made

In this text

Belgium sweeps Turkey in LiègeBelgium sweeps Turkey in LiègeVan Bommel assesses performance ahead of Paris tripVan Bommel assesses performance ahead of Paris tripFrance held by Italy in Zidane home debutFrance held by Italy in Zidane home debutLewandowski hits three while Džeko finishes international careerLewandowski hits three while Džeko finishes international career

Where

LiègeSaint-Denis

Based on reports by

De Morgen, 7sur7, RTBF, BBC, gelderlander.nl, Le Soir, AP NEWS

List of sources

Football · Liège and Saint-Denis

De Bruyne and Lewandowski lead Nations League wins as Zidane draws in home debut

Kevin De Bruyne scored twice in Belgium's 3-0 win over Turkey, while Robert Lewandowski netted a hat trick for Poland and Edin Džeko retired after 152 caps.

LiègeSaint-Denis
Liège, Saint-Denis · Belgium, France

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AI text based on reports by De Morgen, 7sur7, RTBF and other publishers. Changed on 3 Oct at 12:06. How it is made