France were held to a 1-1 draw by Italy on Friday in Zinédine Zidane's first home game since being appointed coach of Les Bleus. The match took place at the Stade de France in Saint-Denis, near Paris, in front of a packed crowd of 77,118. Zidane, a 54-year-old icon and former Ballon d'Or winner, was the focus of attention as he made his home debut against Italy, the same opponents as in his final game as a player.
Michael Olise scored a superb goal for France, smashing a shot in off the crossbar from a free-kick early in the second half. However, Inter Milan defender Alessandro Bastoni equalised for Italy midway through the second half to prevent Zidane from making it three wins out of three in charge of his country. Olise had also scored a stunning solo effort to give France a 1-0 win in Belgium four days prior to this match.
Zidane was without captain Kylian Mbappe, who had returned to his club after suffering a knee injury while scoring the winner in Turkey last week. Olise returned to the starting line-up in one of six changes from the Belgium game, with new faces Jeremy Jacquet and Lucas Da Cunha also playing. Italy are rebuilding under Roberto Mancini, who has returned for a second spell as coach of a nation who have failed to qualify for the last three World Cups.
Italy goalkeeper and captain Gianluigi Donnarumma made several crucial saves in the second half to keep his team in the game. Moise Kean should have given Italy an early lead after a sweeping move, only for his disappointing finish to be saved by Mike Maigan. Davide Frattesi also came close in the first half, while Kean had a goal disallowed for offside.
The hosts turned up the pressure after the break, with Donnarumma saving from Desire Doue, Ousmane Dembele, and Olise before the latter scored the opener on 55 minutes. Rayan Cherki laid off a dead ball, allowing Olise to crash in the goal. However, Bastoni caught Lucas Da Cunha in possession just outside the France box and was left with an easy finish to pull the visitors level.
Donnarumma produced more magic to save from Adrien Rabiot and twice from Eduardo Camavinga, before Dayot Upamecano walked for a second yellow on 85 minutes. France lead UEFA Nations League Group A1 with seven points, with Belgium just behind on six points after a 3-0 win over Turkey. France and Belgium meet on Monday in their last match of this two-week long international window.
Zidane expressed his pride in his team's performance, despite being disappointed with the result. "I am happy with the performance albeit not with the result," he said. "We had chances to score a second goal and we didn't do it. But I am really proud of my players." Mancini was pleased with Italy's performance, saying, "I think this was a great performance tonight against one of the best teams in the world, with very positive aspects to it."
Key points
- France were held to a 1-1 draw by Italy in Zinédine Zidane's first home game as coach of Les Bleus.
- Michael Olise scored a superb goal for France, but Alessandro Bastoni equalised for Italy.
- France lead UEFA Nations League Group A1 with seven points, with Belgium just behind on six points.
