Bradley Barcola endured a frustrating evening as Liverpool's international contingent experienced mixed results, with Giorgi Mamardashvili saving a late penalty for Georgia.
Barcola started for France in their UEFA Nations League match against Belgium in Paris but was substituted after 72 minutes with Zinedine Zidane's side trailing 1-0. France then scored four goals in the final 13 minutes to win 4-1, with Barcola's replacement Desire Doue scoring the equaliser and assisting two goals for Michael Olise.
French media critical of Barcola
Barcola's performance drew a mixed reaction in the French media. FootMercato gave him just 3.5 out of 10, stating "as is often the case with the former Paris Saint-Germain and Lyon player, his lightning-fast bursts of speed were followed by inaccuracies in the final pass or shot". His mark was still higher than fellow forwards Ousmane Dembele and Esteban Lepaul and equal to that of Maghnes Akliouche.
L'Equipe rated Barcola four out of 10, again higher than Dembele and Akliouche along with left-back Andy Dioug, and on a par with Lepaul. RMC Sport were more charitable, claiming "he was one of the few players making runs in behind the defence and very generous in his defensive efforts".
Mamardashvili saves penalty for Georgia
With Liverpool team-mate Jeremy Jacquet missing out due to a hamstring strain, France are now three points clear of Italy in their Nations League group with two games remaining.
Elsewhere, Mamardashvili ended his international break by saving a late penalty from Isaac Price to secure Georgia a goalless draw against Northern Ireland in Belfast. Kieran Morrison, on loan at Sheffield Wednesday this season, earned his third cap for the home team when coming off the bench for the final 16 minutes.
Other Liverpool players in action
Dominik Szoboszlai captained Hungary to a 2-1 win over Ukraine in Trnava, although Milos Kerkez was absent through suspension. Armin Pecsi, on loan at Austrian side TSV Hartberg, was an unused substitute.
Prince Cisse made his fourth appearance for Wales under-19s when playing the final 39 minutes of the goalless friendly draw against Northern Ireland.
