French media split on Barcola after France's 4-1 comeback win over Belgium

Liverpool's Bradley Barcola started France's 4-1 UEFA Nations League win over Belgium but was off the field for the late goals, drawing French ratings from 3.5 to 6 out of 10.

France came from behind to beat Belgium 4-1 in their UEFA Nations League fixture at the Stade de France on Monday night. Trailing 1-0 as late as the 77th minute, the home side turned the game on its head with a rush of goals in the closing minutes. Liverpool's Bradley Barcola, 24, who wears the No. 29 shirt for the club, was brought back into the starting lineup by France coach Zinedine Zidane.

Barcola's evening ended before the turnaround. He had already gone off when France drew level, with Desire Doue, who came on for him five minutes earlier, scoring the equalizer. The late four-goal outburst therefore arrived entirely after the Liverpool man had left the field, denying him any part in the rally.

French media were split on his performance. RMC Sport gave him a rating of 6 out of 10, crediting two early bursts down the wing and a willingness to run in behind the Belgian defense, though its review also noted crosses that failed to pick out a teammate. The outlet highlighted his defensive work rate, a one-on-one chance from a tight angle spurned after 15 minutes, a deflected shot that narrowly missed, and a display it described as "provocative."

FootMercato was far less impressed and scored him 3.5 out of 10. Its assessment said Barcola, like the rest of the French attack, found little room to work with on the left wing and received scant support from the left-back behind him. While he was released in behind on several occasions, his rapid bursts were repeatedly followed by wayward final balls, and France's attacks ended up flowing almost entirely down the right side.

Underlying numbers from Sofascore, cited in the report, reflected the same mixed picture. Barcola was busy going forward but lost the majority of his duels, 66.7 percent by the figures quoted, a sign of how often he came out second best in individual battles during his time on the pitch.

From Liverpool's point of view, the international window still served the 24-year-old well. Barcola logged 175 minutes across France's four matches, extra game time to build on the rhythm he had found at club level, and he returns to Merseyside without injury.

The one lingering concern is his output. Barcola has gone nine games for club and country since the start of September without a goal or an assist. Liverpool spent an initial 106 million pounds to sign him, according to The Athletic, after earlier spells at Paris Saint-Germain and Lyon, and the report noted that the pressure on him will grow the longer his wait for a goal goes on.

Attention now shifts back to club matters. Liverpool face Manchester City on Sunday in Barcola's next chance to end the drought.