Both teams got on the scoresheet in each of these two side’s opening fixtures on Friday night and a repeat looks worth siding with in Lyon on Monday.

France will be desperate to bounce back after a poor performance against Italy but it could be argued that Belgium will represent an equally if not tougher test.

While the Red Devils could land a blow on a French defence that have conceded five goals across their last two matches, Domenico Tedesco’s team are not exactly watertight at the back themselves. Belgium’s backline was breached by Israel last time out and they also failed to shutout Slovakia at Euro 2024.

Both teams to score has been the right wager in six of France’s overall nine Nations League home games and a repeat here represents value at the odds on offer.

Given the current state of play in the section, over 2.5 goals looks worth getting on board with at the Groupama Stadium. Even at this early stage of the campaign France will know that a second successive home loss would leave their hopes of securing a second Nations League crown hanging by a thread.

As such, they will have to go for the jugular here and that should lead to an entertaining affair. The over 2.5 goal barrier was broken in each of these two sides’ respective Group A2 openers, and that was also the case the last time the two nations crossed paths in this competition.

It’s also worth noting that five of Belgium’s seven games away from home ahead of Euro 2024 featured a minimum of three match strikes. Thus, all the ingredients appear to be in place for a high-scoring shootout between the pair on matchday two.

Jules Kounde was one of France’s standout performers against Belgium at Euro 2024, expertly defusing the threat provided by Jeremy Doku. The French right-back committed a couple of fouls in the process so it makes plenty of sense to side with him to give away one free kick or more on Monday night.

Kounde went on to commit a further two fouls against Spain at the semi-final stage, not to mention he has given away one free kick or more in three of his four La Liga appearances for Barcelona this season.

The aforementioned Doku found himself on the receiving end of some rough treatment when Belgium faced off with France at Euro 2024. The Red Devils winger was fouled on no fewer than five occasions. That trend continued on Friday night in the Nations League, as the Belgian livewire picked up a further three fouls during his sides 3-1 win over Israel.

On top of this, Doku’s pace and trickery has led to him being fouled a combined total of six times across Man City’s opening three Premier League games of the season. With that in mind, a minimum of one Kounde foul should be within range on Monday night.

Belgium registered two shots on target against France at Euro 2024 and they can work the French goalkeeper at least twice during the pair’s latest tussle.

In fact, the Red Devils, along with each of France’s other five opponents at Euro 2024, all registered two or more on-target efforts. Italy have since racked up 11 shots against Les Bleus on Friday night, hitting the target with six of those efforts, three of which found the back of the net.

As for Belgium, their morale will have been boosted by their 3-1 win over Israel last time out, on a night where they peppered their opponents goal with 25 shots, eight of which were on-target efforts. Thus, back the Belgians to work the France goalkeeper twice or more on Monday night.

Kylian Mbappe is going through a bit of a dry spell for France right now but it’s surely only a matter of time before he makes his mark in his country’s latest Nations League campaign.

Mbappe has netted a mighty impressive 48 goals in 85 appearances for his country, chipping in with a further 35 assists for good measure.

While Euro 2024 didn’t go to plan for France or Mbappe, the French megastar still managed three goal involvements across his five appearances, and he could certainly do damage against a Belgium backline that was breached against Israel last time out.

In fact, Mbappe has either struck or set up a goal in 14 of his last 19 starts for the national team, making him a great value option for another goal involvement against the Red Devils.

Many expected Kevin De Bruyne to retire from international duty after Euro 2024 but the Belgian skipper showed he still has plenty to offer on the international stage with an excellent performance against Israel on Friday night.

The Man City maestro helped himself to two of Belgium’s three goals, with three of his overall five attempts on goal hitting the target, making him an attractive option to work the goalkeeper just once on Monday night.

De Bruyne registered an on-target effort when the two nations met at Euro 2024, not to mention he has accumulated a combined total of three shots on target across Man City’s opening three Premier League games of the season.

With De Bruyne expected to operate in his preferred advanced midfield role again on Monday night, he looks worth backing to hit the target at least once against a France side that shipped three goals at home last time out.

Amadou Onana is becoming an increasingly important player for both club and country and he looks worth backing to commit two or more fouls against France on Monday night.

The 6ft 4in powerhouse got on the wrong side of the referee twice during Belgium’s 3-1 win over Israel on Friday night and he may have to ramp up his aggression against a France side laced with quality all over the park.

Onana has also been a serial offender during the opening three rounds of the new Premier League campaign, giving away a combined total of seven free-kicks across his first three appearances of the season for Aston Villa.

Whilst playing for Everton last season, Onana averaged 1.66 fouls per 90 minutes in the top-flight, further highlighting his habit for tackling himself into trouble.

Wout Faes and the rest of Belgium’s backline will have the unenviable task of trying to keep tabs on Kylian Mbappe on Monday night.

Faes has never been the most reliable defender and he does have a tendency to give away cheap free kicks. He committed a foul against Israel on Friday night and he was also averaging one foul-per game for his country at Euro 2024.

Back in the top tier of English football with Leicester City this season, Faes has fallen foul of the referee at least once in each of the Foxes’ three matches so far. Given the pace and flair that France possess in forward areas, Faes should have his work cut out here, making him an appealing option for a minimum of one misdemeanour.

Only England (95) and Spain (75) suffered more fouls than the French (69) at Euro 2024.