France held to draw by Italy in Zidane's home debut

Italy stopped Zinedine Zidane from winning his first home match as France manager. They drew 1-1 with Les Bleus on Friday in the UEFA Nations League at the Stade de France.

Michael Olise gave France the lead just after half-time with a fantastic free-kick. But Alessandro Bastoni took advantage of a mistake in defense to equalize for Italy. France ended the match with 10 players.

This result ended Zidane’s winning run after he won his first two games against Türkiye and Belgium. France still leads Group A1 with seven points, one ahead of Belgium, while Italy has four points.

In the beginning, France had most of the ball but struggled to create good chances.

Italy had the first big chance when Moise Kean found himself near the goal but shot straight at France's goalkeeper Mike Maignan.

Olise almost scored for France when his cross deflected off the bar. Italy threatened again before half-time when Davide Frattesi’s shot was deflected by a French player and went for a corner.

France increased the pressure after the break. Gianluigi Donnarumma made two big saves to stop shots from Désiré Doué and Ousmane Dembélé.

The Italy captain then blocked Olise’s curling shot before France finally scored in the 55th minute.

Rayan Cherki took a free-kick short to Olise, who curled a brilliant shot over the wall and in off the crossbar, leaving Donnarumma with no chance.

Italy hit back in the 68th minute after France made a mistake while trying to play from the back.

Lucas Da Cunha could not control a pass, giving Bastoni a chance to win the ball back. The Inter Milan defender moved forward and scored past Maignan to make it 1-1.

France looked for a second goal, but Donnarumma kept making saves, stopping a shot from Adrien Rabiot and later from Eduardo Camavinga.

Things got tougher for France when Dayot Upamecano received a second yellow card five minutes before the end, leaving Zidane's team with 10 players.

Italy could not take advantage of their extra player, and the match ended 1-1.

This game was also special for Zidane. It was his first home game as France coach against the same team he played in his last international match, Italy in the 2006 World Cup final.

That final also ended with a 1-1 draw, but Italy won on penalties after Zidane was sent off during extra time.

France will stay on top of Group A1 after three matches, while Italy remains in fourth place with four points. In another match on Friday, Belgium beat Türkiye 3-0, with Kevin De Bruyne scoring twice and Romelu Lukaku adding a third.