France – Italy

France are unlikely to defeat Italy as early as the first round of the Nations League

On Friday, 6 September the national teams of France and Italy will play in the central match of the day of the Nations League. This is a meeting within the top division. Also in the quartet with the grandees are Belgium and Israel. France and Italy have retained their coaches despite a disappointing performance at Euro 2024. The French were obviously expected to do more than make the semi-finals at the continental tournament. Didier Deschamps' team's attack didn't work at all. This can be attributed to the injury of Kylian Mbappe. The coaching staff failed to find an alternative solution. At the same time, France still remains one of the strongest national teams in the world. The team usually takes the Nations League seriously. The French have already won the second round of the European tournament under Didier Deschamps. The coach has not started to organise a revolution with the squad: the usual core of players, which was used at the Euros, has been called up. There are a few newcomers: defender Bade, midfielder Kone and forward Oliseh. At the same time, the main squad will remain the same. In attack, Mbappe, Griezmann and Dembele will still be counted on. Predictably, Olivier Giroud finished his career in the national team. Even without the veteran, France have an overabundance of players in the attacking line. In Italy there was a request for changes after the failure at Euro 2024, but the federation decided to give another chance to Luciano Spalletti. The coach is in a difficult situation. Italy don't have many world stars. Perhaps, only Donnarumma and Barella stand out, but the team is expected to fight for the highest places. And now the coach has been forced to call up Keane, Raspadori, Retegui and Zaccagni in attack. The whole quartet is not even close to the level of big matches. Against the backdrop of France's stars, it looks like a different league altogether. Another headache is the absence of Barella. He can be partially replaced by Sandro Tonali. The midfielder was immediately called up to the national team, although he only served his suspension for betting. France and Italy have not played each other in official meetings for a long time. The last three battles have all been friendlies - all stayed with the French. Italy won back in 2008 at the Euros. Now bookmakers are confident in the success of the hosts, but Spalletti's team is too underestimated. Still, it's not the most important match, and experiments with the squad are possible. Mbappe is not in top form, and many of the star players are at risk of simply not tuning in due to a lack of motivation. The tournament format also leaves room for error, given that it is now not so important to occupy the first line in the quartet. It is logical to assume the absence of a rout. Donnarumma can keep Italy in the game.