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Italy have arrived in Paris ahead of tomorrow night’s clash at the Stade de France, their second away fixture in succession following Monday’s impressive win in Bursa (20:45, live on Rai 1, with Spain’s Gil Manzano in charge). The Azzurri have won just two of their last 15 meetings with France, a statistic that highlights the size of the task ahead. Tomorrow’s game will offer the toughest test yet of Italy’s progress, just days after the four-goal victory over Türkiye provided a welcome boost. It promises to be a demanding night, but the Azzurri will take confidence from their last visit to Paris. Two years ago, shortly after the European Championship in Germany, Italy ran out 3-1 winners at the Stade de France, inflicting one of only two home defeats France have suffered in their last 12 competitive matches.
“Italy against France is never an ordinary game,” Roberto Mancini said in his press conference at the Stade de France. “It will certainly be a great match. We want to play well and give a good account of ourselves.”
A HOST OF STARS. Even without their biggest star, Kylian Mbappè, Les Bleus can still call on some of the finest players in world football, from Michael Olise and Ousmane Dembélé to Désiré Doué and Barcola. There is no shortage of excitement around Zinedine Zidane’s new-look France either, with the coach set to make his home debut in charge. His side sit top of their Nations League group with maximum points after narrow away wins over Türkiye and Belgium. “France are one of the best teams in the world and they’re full of incredible players. It will certainly be a difficult game. They’re much further along than we are, but this match will tell us a lot about what we’re capable of and what we can achieve over the coming months.”
Italy, meanwhile, rediscovered both their rhythm and their attacking intent in Bursa, showing the enterprise that had been missing in the first half against Belgium.“I don’t think you should get too down after a defeat or carried away after a win,” Mancini stressed. “Beyond the result, the team played good football, and that’s what we have to try to do in every game. Tomorrow will be no different: our aim is to go out there and play.”
ROTATION REQUIRED. After changing eight of the 11 players who started against Belgium for the game in Türkiye, Mancini is set to rotate again tomorrow night. As before, the aim is to manage the squad carefully ahead of the return fixture against Türkiye in Bologna on 5 October, with nine players remaining at Coverciano to train: Honest Ahanor, Nicolò Cambiaghi, Diego Coppola, Daniele Ghilardi, Samuele Inacio, Eddy Kouadio, Rolando Mandragora, Massimo Pessina and Alessandro Romano. With four matches in the space of 11 days, rotation is unavoidable. “We’ll make fewer changes than we did in Bursa,” the coach explained. “I don’t have many doubts about the line-up, but we’ll assess everything tomorrow.”
A BATTLE OF THE NO.10s. Having come out on top in the first of two meetings with Türkiye and his former teammate Vincenzo Montella, Mancini will now pit his wits against Zinedine Zidane. It is a fascinating subplot between two former No.10s who have always favoured talent over tactical rigidity. The pair faced each other just twice as players, both in the 1996/97 season: a goalless draw and a narrow victory for Zizou’s Juventus away to Sampdoria. “Zidane was one of the best players in the world. He worked under some great coaches and I’m sure he picked things up from them. I think this is the first time we’ve faced each other as coaches, but the contest isn’t between us. It’s Italy against France, one of the great classics of European football.” Mancini also commented on Diana Bianchedi’s resignation as head of delegation: “We’re very sorry. She’s a great champion and she has been fantastic with us over the past few days.” The coach then explained why Inacio had not been included in the squad for the first three matches. “He’s a very young player and still needs time to develop. For now, he’s training with us. These things take a little time.”
BASTONI: “NO FEAR.” One hundred and eighty-one days on from the night in Zenica, when his red card left Italy with ten men and made him one of the main targets of criticism after the Azzurri missed out on World Cup qualification, Alessandro Bastoni has found reason to smile again in an Italy shirt. His goal in Bursa set the tone for the convincing win over Türkiye and marked the start of a new chapter in a story that still has plenty left to be written. “Zenica left me with a lot of sadness and bitterness,” the Inter defender admitted in his press conference. “But I think games like that are part of the journey for any top-level footballer. That’s the nature of our profession: when you do well, you’re a hero; when things go wrong, you’re criticised. You can’t change the past, but you can control the present and make the right decisions for the future.”
Even without Mbappé, France have an attack packed with quality, leaving no room for lapses in concentration. “We’ll need a huge performance, both defensively and as a team. The only way to make things difficult for France is to be brave enough to keep the ball. We have too much history behind us to come here just to make up the numbers. We’re a good team, even if we’re still at the start of our journey, and we have the quality to achieve great things. “More than focusing on others, we need to focus on ourselves, because only by improving individually can we reach our goals as a team.”
