It was Sunday, March 28, 2021, and Manchester United's Anthony Martial started as France played Kazakhstan in a World Cup qualifier.
The stadium in Nur-Sultan, the capital of Kazakhstan, was empty as the outside world continued to fight the pandemic, which meant it was only each nation's coaching staff and the players on the pitch that got to witness a moment of brilliance courtesy of Martial.
Just before the 20-minute mark, the forward picked up the ball in the opposition's half and stylishly pirouetted around a defender with his first touch of the ball before gliding towards goal. Martial then provided Ousmane Dembele with a chance to score and the Barcelona forward duly found the back of the net. It was an excellent way to open the scoring and it all started with Martial.
