(Football news) The first matchday of the UEFA Nations League has begun. Three matches were played on the 3rd of June and all three were massive upsets where the away side came out on top. Croatia, Austria, France, Netherlands, Belgium and Denmark were all in action on what was an exciting day of football. There are still 3 more matches left to play in the international break which means there will be more scintillating matches which will perfectly set up the World Cup at the end of the year.

Austria in their first match under Ralf Rangnick defeated Croatia 3-0 away from home and they did it without their captain and Champions League winner David Alaba. Marko Arnautovic opened the scoring in the 41st minute after which the game opened up a bit. Michael Gregoritsch and Marcel Sabitzer scored in the 2nd half to put the game to bed. Despite having 61% possession, Croatia were completely outplayed. Sabitzer, who has had a very difficult season with Bayern Munich was the star of the show. Rangnick is off to a very good start and can concentrate on the job now that he is not a consultant with Manchester United. 

France were handed a shock 2-1 defeat by Denmark at the Stade de France. Despite playing the full 90 minutes of the Champions League final less than a week ago, Karim Benzema started the game and played the full 90 minutes. The first half was goalless after which Kylian Mbappe was taken off due to a niggle. His replacement Christopher Nkunku assisted Karim Benzema who went past a couple of defenders to score a worldie and break the deadlock. Raphael Varane also had to go off injured and he was replaced by William Saliba which turned things around. Danish substitute Andreas Cornelius scored twice to win the game for Denmark. Despite having more possession, France weren't very effective in attack. Everything looked very lethargic and predictable. 

Netherlands dismantled Belgium 4-1 away from home. Steven Bergwijn scored the opener in the 40th minute with a sumptuous long shot. Memphis Depay scored two goals in the 2nd half while Denzel Dumfries also got his name on the scoresheet. Michy Batshuayi got a consolation goal at the very end to deny Netherlands a clean sheet. The Barcelona duo of Depay and Frenkie De Jong were incredible throughout the 90 minutes. It is a tough loss to take for Belgium as all their big names had a quiet night. The injury to Romelu Lukaku in the 27th minute was a big blow for the host and it played its part in the loss. 

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