Désiré Doué shines against Belgium, Zidane faces a dilemma

On Monday evening in Brussels, the Belgium‑France match gave Michael Olise just over ten minutes to open the score for the Blues, but it was ultimately the young Parisian winger Désiré Doué who dominated the game, earning the admiration of Zinédine Zidane.

Olise opens the scoring in ten minutes

Substituted in the 77th minute, the Bayern winger made a solo run that split the Belgian defence before finding the opponent’s goalkeeper in the 88th minute, taking the score to 1‑0 in the Nations League. Zinédine Zidane praised the goal from the touchline, calling it a “jewel”.

The Paris Saint‑Germain dribbler received a rating of 8/10 in L’Equipe, the highest for the France team, level with Jérémy Jacquet. He even hit the crossbar in the 12th minute, lighting up the match.

The sports daily wrote: “Ideas and energy with and without the ball.” This assessment highlights Doué’s impact both in attack and in recovery.

Doué dazzles France, Jobard likens him to Michael Jordan

Stéphane Jobard, assistant to Rudi Garcia with the Red Devils during the 2026 World Cup, confirmed this analysis, describing the performance as “very high level”.

Doué compared to Michael Jordan

Le Parisien compared the young winger to Michael Jordan, stating: “He delivered an XXL performance, it’s top class, with an execution speed in the small area that is incredible.” The journalist added that he expects a “magic trick” every time he touches the ball.

Jobard, however, reminded that the PSG player can still improve, particularly in finishing: “If we linger on finishing, we can be disappointed,” he explained, while emphasizing his role as a catalyst that pushes back the Belgian defence.

Doué's play makes the Blues dream like Michael Jordan

The puzzle begins for Zinédine Zidane, with offensive spots being scarce in the France team. In Turkey, Doué came off the bench, the manager having preferred the trio Kylian Mbappé‑Ousmane Dembélé‑Michael Olise, while the repositioning of “Kyks” to the left wing was seen as a risk for playing time.