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BRUSSELS, Belgium -- France ended a three-game losing streak on Wednesday by drawing 0-0 with Belgium in a friendly, while striker Karim Benzema extended his goal drought for the national team to 1,155 minutes. Belgium bossed the midfield and created the better chances but lacked the finishing touch despite an inspired Kevin De Bruyne. Eric Abidal was playing his first match for France since recovering from a liver transplant last year while Geoffrey Kondogbia was making his France debut. France will face Georgia and Belarus in World Cup qualifiers next month while Belgium will visit Scotland. "I would have preferred to win, even though we lost our previous matches," France coach Didier Deschamps told TF1 television. "We didnt win this match, but we didnt lose either. The match that we will have to win is the one in Georgia in September." In six matches this year, France has four losses, one draw and just one victory. By contrast, Belgium won its five previous games. Benzema had the first scoring chance of the match in the 11th minute with an effort from a tight angle stopped by goalkeeper Thibaut Courtois. But Belgium looked the better team, spurred by an attack that had a strong Chelsea flavour with Romelu Lukaku up front and Eden Hazard and De Bruyne on the wings. Laurent Koscielny twice saved France with timely tackles. The Arsenal centre back beat Lukaku to the ball in the 16th to clear a teasing cross from De Bruyne before intercepting a through ball from De Bruyne for Hazard in the 24th. Koscielny teamed up with Abidal in the heart of the France defence. The Monaco centre back played the entire match and showed poise despite Belgiums pressure. Belgium is 10th in the FIFA rankings while France has slipped to 23rd. The gap clearly showed on the pitch. Hazard cut inside to fire a low drive straight into Hugo Lloris arms in the 21st while De Bruyne took advantage of a poor clearance from Koscielny in the 37th but missed the target from close range. Franck Ribery led Bayern Munich to the Champions League title last May and proved Frances most potent threat. The France winger outpaced Marouane Fellaini to square the ball back for Benzema in the 43rd but Vincent Kompany rushed back to clear Riberys low cross. On the stroke of halftime, Ribery set up Benzema, whose curling shot sailed over the bar. The Real Madrid striker also failed to catch the frame from five yards in the 59th and was denied by Courtois in the 66th as his international goal drought continued. Kondogbia shone last month as a member of the France team that won the Under-20 World Cup. But on Wednesday he struggled in midfield for his first cap. One of his turnovers led to a dangerous Belgian counterattack in the fifth minute. Kondogbia nearly made amends in the 30th as Courtois punched a corner into the path of the Sevilla midfielder, whose volley deflected off Toby Alderweirelds head. Belgium stepped up the pressure in the second half. But fullback Sebastien Pocognoli in the 49th, Fellaini in the 62nd, and substitute Kevin Mirallas in the 73rd all missed the target. De Bruyne tormented the France defence, slipping the ball to Lukaku in the 59th but the Chelsea forward could not make contact with the ball, four yards from the goal line. Lloris helped France salvage a draw by saving an angled shot from Lukaku in the 53rd and parrying a powerful strike from De Bruyne in the 68th. Samir Nasri came off the bench in the 63rd to replace Dimitri Payet. That was Nasris first appearance for France since serving a three-game ban for insulting a journalist in an expletive-laced tirade following a 2-0 loss to Spain at the 2012 European Championship. France had the last chance of the match. Olivier Giroud, who replaced Benzema, pounced on a loose ball in the 85th but sent his volley over the bar from 15 yards. In World Cup qualifying, Belgium leads Group A, three points ahead of Croatia, whereas France trails Spain by one point in Group I. Travis dArnaud Mets Jersey . According the Toronto Star, a knee injury will keep Sundin out of the lineup, which includes former teammates Gary Roberts, Darcy Tucker, Tie Domi and Curtis Joseph. Jed Lowrie Jersey . The International Olympic Committee released the official list of bid cities on Friday after the deadline for applications had passed. The candidates -- all previously announced in their own countries -- are: Almaty, Kazakhstan; Beijing; Krakow, Poland; Lviv, Ukraine; Oslo, Norway; and Stockholm. http://www.metssale.com/mets-juan-lagares-jersey/ . 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CHARLOTTE, N.C. -- Carolina Panthers quarterback Cam Newton made a statement on the unrest in Charlotte on Sunday by wearing a black T-shirt during pregame warmups with a quote from Martin Luther King Jr. emblazoned on the back.In all capital letters, the quote read: INJUSTICE ANYWHERE IS A THREAT TO JUSTICE EVERYWHERE. -- MLKNewton doesnt typically voice an opinion on controversial social issues. But he spent a majority of his Wednesday news conference addressing Tuesdays shooting in Charlotte that sparked violent protests on Wednesday night only a few blocks away from Bank of America Stadium.Reports indicated that there would be?threats of a protest prior to Sundays game versus the Minnesota Vikings,?and about 100 protesters kneeled outside the stadium as the national anthem played.The protesters chanted along to the beat of a brass band. They were then drowned out by noise from inside the stadium. Fans gathered along the ramps inside the stadium and watched the scene below before the game.Officers wearing black riot gear surrounded the stadium, and police on bicycles lined up wheel-to-wheel to surround the protesters.Also in Charlotte, Panthers backup safety Marcus Ball stood with his right hand raised and index finger extended during the national anthem. He was the lone player to do anything during the anthem.Panthers safety Tre Boston said he thought about taking a knee on Sunday, but he wanted to wait until he and the rest of the team could find something that everybody wants to do to unify the team and the city. He said he was disappointed in Ball for holding up his right hand and index finger as his protest Sunday.Boston said he hoped to have something prepared by next weeks game at Atlanta to express how he and the team feelsWe have to do something. Everybody was watching us today, he said. We have to find a way to show them not only will we play for you, but we want to be with you in these times, we want to show that we recognize whats going on. Not just make it a normal day of playing football. Some people want a normal day.On Wednesday, Newton said he wasnt happy how the justice has been dealt with over the years, and the state of opppression in our community.ddddddddddddBut we also as black people have to do right by ourselves. We cant be hypocrites. And I say that on one voice and also another voice that when you go public or when things happen in the community, its not the fact that things are happening, its the way they are being treated after they happen.Late Tuesday afternoon, a black Charlotte police officer shot and killed Keith Lamont Scott, who also is black, in an apartment complex parking lot about 15 minutes away from Bank of America Stadium.The police said Scott exited his vehicle carrying a gun. Scotts family said he was unarmed and sitting in his car reading a book while waiting for his son to come home from school.Protests involving hundreds on Tuesday and Wednesday night turned to violence.It could have happened in Atlanta. It could have happened in Los Angeles. It doesnt matter, Newton said. Its embarrassing for things to keep happening, and from what I do know, we had an incident that happened in 2013 that had something to do with the police, and it went to jury and whatever, it got washed away in time.Newton was referring to the 2013 fatal shooting of Jonathan Ferrell by Charlotte officer Randall Kerrick. Ferrell, who was black, was shot 10 times by Kerrick, who is white.Kerrick was charged with voluntary manslaughter. A judge declared a mistrial after the jury could not reach a verdict.My big thing is holding people accountable, no matter what the race, no matter what the gender is, no matter what the age is, Newton said. We all have to hold each other accountable. And that is the world we are living in.When you get a person that does some unjust things or killing an innocent person, or killing fathers, or killing people that have actual families, thats real. I have a son and a daughter that Im responsible for. How would it be if one day they come home and theres no more Daddy? You can get a settlement, but money doesnt matter in that sense. We need people to be held accountable.The Associated Press contributed to this report. ' ' '