The Aporia · Lewandowski and De Bruyne shine in Nations League while Džeko plays his last international game

Lewandowski and De Bruyne shine in Nations League while Džeko plays his last international game

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The Associated Press. (2026, October 2). Lewandowski and De Bruyne shine in Nations League while Džeko plays his last international game. Toronto Star. https://www.thestar.com/sports/soccer/lewandowski-and-de-bruyne-shine-in-nations-league-while-d-eko-plays-his-last-international-game/article_a8b51436-478c-5ba8-9c29-781ff84c6ca5.html

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Quick Summary

In recent Nations League matches, Robert Lewandowski and Kevin de Bruyne dominated their games, each scoring hat tricks to lead Poland and Belgium to victories over Romania and Turkey respectively. De Bruyne's performance included two goals in a 3-0 win for Belgium in Liege at age 35, while Lewandowski scored three times as Poland thrashed Romania 6-0 after the latter was reduced to ten men. Additionally, Edin Džeko made his final international appearance for Bosnia-Herzegovina with a draw against Sweden, concluding a career that saw him set records with 152 appearances and 73 goals for the national team.

Written by AI on 2026-10-03, from this article's own text only (the story summary below draws on all the coverage).

AI analysis

Story summary

On Friday, Robert Lewandowski and Kevin De Bruyne starred in UEFA Nations League matches. De Bruyne led Belgium to a 3-0 victory over Turkey with two goals and an assist, showing his dominance despite being 35 years old. Meanwhile, Lewandowski contributed to Poland's win but specific details weren't provided. In another match, newly appointed France coach Zinedine Zidane faced Italy in his home debut at Stade de France where the crowd cheered loudly upon hearing his name. Michael Olise scored for France early in the second half with a curling shot from 20 meters, but ultimately ended in a draw against Italy. Additionally, veteran player Edin Džeko played his last international game, marking the end of an era for Romania’s national team.

Written for “European Nations League Matches” on 2026-11-03, grounded in this article and the 0 other(s) covering the same event.

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Uncertain

0 of 22 hedged ("reportedly", "may", "according to")

Leaning

not political

takes no side on a contested political question

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64/100

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The Associated Press

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Topics

Belgium France Italy Romania Turkey

Subjects

Belgium GPE · 4× France GPE · 4× De Bruyne PERSON · 3× Džeko PERSON · 3× Italy GPE · 3× Lewandowski PERSON · 3× Edin Džeko PERSON · 2× Romania GPE · 2× Turkey GPE · 2× Zidane PERSON · 2×

Narrative

Zidane oversees draw in home debut When Zidane’s name was read out by the stadium announcer after the teams were announced, a roar filled Stade de France. Things looked good for the home side when Michael Olise put France ahead in the 55th minute with a curling shot from 20 meters which went in off the crossbar.

framing: assertive · carried by 1 article(s) · first seen 2026-10-03

2026-10-03 · Toronto Star

Lewandowski and De Bruyne shine in Nations League while Džeko plays his last international game · assertive framing

Claims (22 extracted, 0 hedged)

Veteran stars took center stage in the Nations League on Friday with Robert Lewandowski and Kevin de Bruyne leading Poland and Belgium to victories thanks to multi-goal performances. asserted

Lewandowski → take → performances

Italy also kept Zinedine Zidane from winning in his home debut as France coach, while Edin Džeko made his last international appearance. asserted

Džeko → keep → appearance

De Bruyne showed he can still dominate a match at age 35 when he scored Belgium’s first two goals in a 3-0 win over Turkey in League A. De Bruyne opened the scoring 10 minutes into the game in Liege when he played a one-two with Dodi Lukébakio and struck from near the edge of the area. asserted

he → show → area

The Napoli playmaker curled home another goal with half an hour to play. asserted

playmaker → curl → hour

Substitute Romelu Lukaku sealed the win over the Turks. asserted

Lukaku → seal → Turks

Lukébakio hit the post twice. asserted

Lukébakio → hit → post

“I try to lead by example for the younger players, and they follow easily,” De Bruyne said. asserted

Bruyne → try → players

“I feel I can still contribute. asserted

I → feel → ?

I am enjoying myself, and that is the main thing.” asserted

that → enjoy → myself

Belgium made it two wins and a loss — which came to France — under new coach Mark van Bommel. asserted

which → make → Bommel

which → oversee → crossbar

But poor defending midway through the second half allowed Italy central defender Alessandro Bastoni to run through and clip a low shot inside the right post to secure a 1-1 draw. asserted

Bastoni → allow → draw

France leads Group 1 with seven points, followed by Belgium with six, Italy with four and Turkey with zero. asserted

France → lead → zero

Lewandowski hits three asserted

Lewandowski → hit → three

Lewandowski scored a hat trick to lead a 6-0 demolition of 10-man Romania in League B. The 38-year-old Chicago Fire striker earned and converted a 24-minute penalty when Romania defender Radu Dragusin was sent off for fouling him in the box. asserted

Dragusin → score → box

Lewandowski made it 2-0 in the 47th from a pass by Nicola Zalewski and then rounded off the lopsided victory late with his third goal. asserted

it → make → goal

Džeko finishes international career asserted

Džeko → finish → career

Edin Džeko finished his nearly 20-year-international career for Bosnia-Herzegovina in a 1-1 draw with Sweden also in League B. Džeko, 40, debuted for his nation in June 2007. asserted

Džeko → finish → June

He finished with 152 appearances and 73 goals, making him the record holder in both categories for the tiny Balkan nation after helping it reach two World Cups. asserted

it → finish → Cups

Džeko was given an honor guard when he was subbed off in the 63rd, shortly after Viktor Gyökeres scored for Sweden. asserted

Gyökeres → give → Sweden

Kerim Alajbegović equalized in the 80th for the hosts. asserted

Alajbegović → equalize → hosts

Also in League B, Northern Ireland beat Ukraine 3-0 in Slovakia with Ciaron Brown scoring twice. ___ asserted

Brown → beat → Slovakia