October 11, (THEWILL) – France came from behind to beat Spain 2-1 and win the first ever Nations League thanks to a late goal from Paris Saint-Germain forward Kylian Mbappe.
After a scoreless first half, Spain’s Mikel Oyarzabal scored a low driven goal in the second period, but Karim Benzema quickly equalized with a fantastic curler from the edge of the box into the top corner.
With both teams vying for their first Nations League crown, Kylian Mbappe scored late on, coolly putting the ball past Unai Simon. The goal was reviewed by VAR for suspected offside, but the goal was upheld.
In a first half that saw three futile efforts on goal, Spain maintained a 64% possession. In the sixth minute, Benzema had the finest chance of the game when he circled goalkeeper Unai Simon and attempted to square the ball across goal, but Cesar Azpilicueta cleared the ball away.
The contest kicked off in the 63rd minute when Theo Hernandez hit the crossbar from close range before Spain broke the deadlock due to Oyarzabal. He outmuscled Upamecano and blasted his left-footed strike past the stationary Hugo Lloris into the bottom corner.
Two minutes later, France equalized courtesy to Benzema’s spectacular shot. Despite Simon’s fingertips, the Real Madrid attacker cut onto his right foot and curled his shot into the top corner.
Mbappe sprinted onto a Hernandez through ball late in the game, made a stepover in front of Simon, and slotted the ball into the bottom corner to give France a disputed win. It was referred to VAR because of a suspected Mbappe offside. The goal was allowed to stand despite the close call.
Two minutes from time, Oyarzabal almost equalized, but his first-time shot was skillfully parried away by Lloris’ strong right hand.
In the last seconds, Lloris was the hero once more, parrying a low shot from Yeremi Pino, and France held on to win the trophy.
About the Author
Jude Obafemi is a versatile senior Correspondent at THEWILL Newspapers, excelling in sourcing, researching, and delivering sports news stories for both print and digital publications.
