World Cup holder France will face Belgium in the semi-finals of the Nations League after Thursday’s draw in the Swiss city of Nyon.
The conflict is likely to revive memories of their 2018 World Cup semi-final that France won 1-0 on their way to the crown.
After the match in St. Petersburg, the Belgian goalkeeper Thibaut Courtois accused France of excessive negativity.
“France takes a corner and does nothing but defend,” Courtois was quoted as saying by Sporza. “I would have preferred to have lost in the quarter-final against Brazil, at least it was a team that wanted to play football. France is just a football team.”
Belgian skipper Eden Hazard was quoted as saying in the newspaper Het Nieuwsblad: “I would rather lose with this Belgium than win with this France. But they defend strongly and are very effective. We have not found their weak point. The little moment of magic needs to be done goals were not there. “
The latest match will be played at Juventus Stadium in Turin on October 7. In the second semifinal, Italy will meet on October 6 at the San Siro in Milan.
The playoffs and third place will take place on October 10.
France came past defending champions Portugal, Ukraine and Sweden to reach the last four. Belgium referred to Denmark, England and Iceland.