France suffered their first defeat under Zinedine Zidane after losing 3-1 to Italy in Milan in a Nations League match. The head coach attributed the defeat mainly to the team’s performance in the second half and stressed that he would not abandon his playing principles.
“We started the match excellently, kept possession and created good chances,” Zidane said. According to him, France experienced serious difficulties defensively after the break.
The head coach rejected the claim that his players had lacked courage against Italy. He pointed out that the problem had been their play without the ball and their defensive organization.
“We collapsed in the second half and disrupted our organization.”
Zidane added that everyone in the team had defended less effectively, but said this was part of the process of development. He stated that the mistakes would be analyzed without changing France’s fundamental playing principles.
The head coach also highlighted the difference between the chances created and the goals scored. France had clear opportunities and hit the woodwork twice, but failed to find the necessary finishing touch.
“My main conclusion is that we were not at the required level when we did not have the ball,” Zidane continued. In his view, this is precisely what must be corrected before the next match.
Kylian Mbappé did not play against Italy because the initial plan had been for him to rest in this match. Zidane said he expected the captain to feature on Sunday, when France will face Turkey in their final group-stage match.