Zidane: Ousmane is pure talent, and I'm happy with what we've delivered

Zinedine Zidane, the head coach of the French national team, praised his players' performance after the victory over Belgium by a goal to nil on Monday in the UEFA Nations League, expressing his satisfaction with the level the team showed despite making nine changes to the lineup compared to the match against Türkiye.

Zinedine Zidane said after the match: "I am very happy with what the team showed, not only with the ball but also without it. We were very good at pressing, and we put a lot of things in front of the strong Belgium national team, which made us suffer at times, but we held on, we were brave, and we were not afraid to push forward into the opponent's half."

He added: "Our level dropped a bit in the second half and we faced some difficulties, which is understandable, especially since we made nine changes compared to the match against Türkiye. The great thing is that everyone was involved and ready."

Speaking about Michael Olise's killer goal in the 90th minute, Zidane said: "I was watching him and wanted to accompany him, I saw him take off with the dribble and said to myself: he will score! I was very excited for him, he is pure talent. He is the type of player I love, as he wants to bring joy when he plays, but he doesn't rely on that alone. He feels the ball and knows when to attack and when to calm the game down."

The French head coach praised Lucas Da Kona's first appearance, saying: "I am not discovering him now, I am very happy with him. It was not easy for him, as it was his first match with the national team, and he entered a group he does not know. For many players, it was a new experience; he played the way he usually plays, and as I wanted him to, freely and without restrictions, just like he does with his club Como."

Regarding the performance of the French national team in general, Zidane explained: "I think we were dominant, which is logical considering the course of the entire match. We deserved to win, and in the end, we managed to score the goal that could have come from the other side, as Belgium had two or three chances, but looking at what we delivered, we deserved this goal."

Zinedine Zidane also praised Dzeiri Doi and Jérémy Doku, saying: "On the flanks, it went very well. When we didn't have the ball, it wasn't easy because Belgium's full-backs were pushing forward a lot, but the forwards did a good job following them. Dzeiri was very good, and Doku was very good too."

He concluded about the importance of all players being ready, saying: "It's difficult to choose just one player. What I like about this team is that everyone feels involved. I don't want players who think they won't participate; that doesn't exist. Everyone should feel they can contribute something at a given moment, and all the players were ready."