Mbappe scores winner on Zidane's France debut before injury exit
Zinedine Zidane's reign as France coach began with a 1-0 Nations League victory over Turkiye, but the win came at a cost after captain Kylian Mbappe went off injured shortly after scoring the decisive goal.
Mbappe broke the deadlock in the 54th minute, drilling past Ugurcan Cakir from the left of the box after Turkiye lost possession deep in their own half and Michael Olise immediately switched play to the France captain. However, the forward hurt himself in the process of scoring, immediately pulling up, and lasted just five more minutes before he was substituted off.
Maignan keeps Turkiye at bay in tense first half
Turkiye almost stunned France just four minutes in, with Baris Alper Yilmaz latching onto a long ball only to be denied by Mike Maignan, who also sprang back up to keep out Can Uzun before a belated offside flag went up.
At the other end, Mbappe scuffed an effort wide, while Rayan Cherki saw a low shot blocked by Merih Demiral as France struggled to break through Turkiye's defence. Olise then forced a stretching save out of Cakir in France's best chance of the first half, and Adrien Rabiot blazed over from the resulting corner.
Les Bleus made a sluggish start to the second half, though, and could have fallen behind in the 50th minute, but Maignan reacted brilliantly to push the unmarked Ismail Yuksek's diving header over the crossbar. Just four minutes later, Mbappe broke the deadlock at the other end.
Cakir red card ends Turkiye's resistance
Mbappe's replacement, Desire Doue, saw a long-range curler pushed away, while Jules Kounde hit the foot of the left post after sitting Uzun down in the box as France sought a second goal.
Turkiye kept pushing for an equaliser, with Maignan standing tall at his near post to keep out Arda Guler, but France finished with all the momentum after Cakir was sent off in the 87th minute. The goalkeeper rushed out of his box to smother Bradley Barcola's run and the ball hit his outstretched arm, earning him a red card for handball outside his area — though France could not add to Mbappe's goal despite the extra man.
Mbappe matches his own record but gives Zidane a worry
The last thing France — and Real Madrid fans — wanted to see was Mbappe exiting the pitch after receiving medical attention. While it may have been precautionary, the France captain looked uncomfortable, and it remains to be seen whether he will be available next time out.
He made his mark before he had to go off, however, netting the first goal of the Zidane era and getting France off to a perfect start in the competition. The strike was Mbappe's 12th goal for France in 2026, equalling the highest total for a Les Bleus player in a single calendar year in the 21st century — matching his own record from 2022.
France were far from their free-flowing best despite having a lot of their big hitters on the pitch, accumulating 1.21 expected goals (xG) from 12 attempts, only slightly more than Turkiye's 1.14 xG from 12 shots.
Guler tried to work some magic for Turkiye, who are set to come up against it with Italy and Belgium also in their group, having three shots — a game high — while also creating three chances and recording 88 touches, more than any of his team-mates.