UEFA Nations League, League A 3FranceFRA 2/10/2026 19:45 ItalyITA Venue Stade de France Referee Jesus Gil ManzanoPreview for France v ItalyThe Zinedine Zidane effect will be on full show tomorrow night when France face Italy in front of an expectant crowd in Paris. The former Les Bleus midfielder has brought in a wave of optimism following his appointment as successor to the long-serving Didier Deschamps. Two successive 1-0 away wins has seen reasons for optimism on the pitch and that has been matched off it with tickets for the game with the Azzurri selling out in minutes.France have looked solid in their opening two Nations League games, winning in Turkey before a late wonder goal from Michael Olise gave them victory over Belgium on Monday night. Zidanes exuberant celebrations, charging down the touchline before booting a stray ball as hard as he could, typified the emotion he has brought to the role following the pragmatic approach adopted by Deschamps.Zidane does, of course, have history with Italy. After five glorious seasons with Juventus, he then turned pantomime villain in the country after head butting Marco Materazzi during the 2006 World Cup final, a game Italy eventually won on penalties.Italy will arrive in France looking to rebuild their shattered reputation after failing to reach the World Cup for the third successive time earlier this year.Roberto Mancini was brought back in for a second spell in charge and the results so far have been mixed. A home defeat to Belgium hinted at a continuation of their recent struggles but the manner of their 4-1 win in Turkey last time out has offered hope the man who led them to the Euro 2020 crown could spark a revival.A trip to the Stade de France is another key indicator of their progress. A draw would be a fantastic result for Italy and offer hope for the remainder of the campaign and beyond.Nations League Group A1 Table UEFA Nations League 2026 World League A Group A #TeamPlayedWonDrawnLostGFGAGDPtsLast 2 1 France22002026 W W 2 Belgium21012113 L W 3 Italy21014313 W L 4 Trkiye200215-40 L L Position 1, 2 : Play Offs: Quarter-finals Position 3 : Relegation Playoffs Position 4 : Relegation Team News for France v ItalyZidane opted to make nine changes for the game with Belgium but several big-hitters are poised to return, including Olise and current Ballon dOr holder Ousmane Dembele. Captain Kylian Mbappe remains sidelined due to a knee injury sustained against Turkey.Mancini named a large squad for this elongated international break and the Italian FA confirmed on Thursday morning that nine players Honest Ahanor, Nicol Cambiaghi, Diego Coppola, Daniele Ghilardi, Samuele Inacio, Eddy Kouadio, Rolando Mandragora, Massimo Pessina, Alessandro Romano would remain at Coverciano and not make the trip to France.Expected line-ups for France v ItalyFrance: Maignan; Kalulu, Upamecano, Lacroix, Truffert; Cherki, Kone, Rabiot; Olise, Dembele, DoueItaly: Donnarumma; Kayode, Mancini, Bastoni, Calafiori; Barella, Fagioli, Tonali; Cambiaghi, P Esposito, MaldiniRecent Form & Stats for France v ItalyItaly hold the upper hand overall. They have won 20 of their previous 41 meetings. France have won 12 with nine draws.The away side won both of the last Nations League meetings.Italy won 3-1 in Paris and France won 3-1 at San Siro in the 2024-25 campaign. None of the last five games between the two has been a draw.Michael Olise has been involved in 13 goals in 14 France games in 2026.That includes coming off the bench to score the winner against Belgium.Francesco Pio Esposito has six goals in 11 games for Italy.The 21-year-old scored and set up a goal in the 4-1 win over Turkey. Recent Results : France UEFA Nations League Belgium BEL W 0 1 2026-09-28 France FRA UEFA Nations League Trkiye TUR W 0 1 2026-09-25 France FRA World Cup France FRA L 0 2 2026-07-14 Spain ESP World Cup France FRA W 2 0 2026-07-09 Morocco MAR World Cup Paraguay PAR W 0 1 2026-07-04 France FRA Recent Results : Italy UEFA Nations League Trkiye TUR W 1 4 2026-09-28 Italy ITA UEFA Nations League Italy ITA L 0 2 2026-09-25 Belgium BEL Friendlies Greece GRE W 0 1 2026-06-07 Italy ITA Friendlies Luxembourg W 0 1 2026-06-03 Italy ITA Where to Watch France v Italy: TV and online streamsFrance versus Italy kicks off at 7.45pm on Friday night.You can watch it in the UK on Amazon Prime Video.Prediction for France v ItalyItaly will improve under Mancini but it seems unrealistic to expect them to challenge France in Paris.France have yet to concede under Zidane and we fancy that to continue and the likes of Dembele and Olise to threaten at the other end. Match PredictionFrance 2 0 Italy Topics France National Football Team Italy National Football Team UEFA Nations League Add us as a preferred source on Google If you enjoy reading this article, you can help support our independent football journalism by adding 101 Great Goals as a preferred source You Should Also Read Germany v Serbia: Preview, expected line-ups, stats and where to watch Nicholas McGee 1st October, 2026 Greece v Netherlands: Preview, expected line-ups, stats and where to watch Nicholas McGee 1st October, 2026 Denmark v Portugal: Preview, expected line-ups, stats and where to watch Nicholas McGee 30th September, 2026 Gordon showing he belongs as Tuchel hails Alexander-Arnold and excellent Hall Nicholas McGee 29th September, 2026 Czechia 0-2 England: Gordon and Kane get Three Lions off the mark in Nations League Nicholas McGee 30th September, 2026 Spain vs Croatia live: Confirmed teams and line ups Ben Miller 29th September, 2026
