Italy dealt a strong blow to France on the latter's home turf by defeating them 3-1 on Friday at the "Parc des Princes" stadium in Paris, as part of Group B in the top tier of the UEFA Nations League.
Bradley Barcola (1) scored for France, but Italy responded with three goals through Federico Dimarco (30), Davide Frattesi (51), and Giacomo Raspadori (74).
France’s coach Didier Deschamps gave Bayern Munich’s new winger Michael Olise the chance to make his official debut for the national team, replacing Paris Saint-Germain’s winger Ousmane Dembélé, while Real Madrid star Kylian Mbappé led the attack.
Olise had shone for the French Olympic team during the Paris Games last month, playing a major role in securing the silver medal.
Both teams entered the match following disappointing performances in the recent European Championship. Italy, the reigning champions from the 2021 tournament, were eliminated in the round of 16 by Switzerland after a 2-0 loss, while France reached the semifinals without impressive displays, especially from Mbappé, before being knocked out by Spain 2-1.
France struck early, scoring after just 13 seconds when winger Bradley Barcola capitalized on Italian defender Giovanni Di Lorenzo's hesitation to fire a powerful shot into the top of the net past Italian goalkeeper Gianluigi Donnarumma, his teammate at Paris Saint-Germain.
The goal was the fastest in France’s history and Barcola’s first for the national team in his sixth appearance.
Italy had a chance to equalize when Davide Frattesi’s header hit the crossbar (6).
France nearly doubled their lead, but Donnarumma saved a low shot from Mbappé (7).
Italy gradually grew into the game and equalized through Inter Milan defender Federico Dimarco, who unleashed a brilliant shot into the top corner of goalkeeper Mike Maignan’s net after a pass from Sandro Tonali (30).
Italy took the lead through Frattesi, who finished from close range (51), before delivering the knockout blow when the Azzurri’s midfield exploited Youssouf Fofana's loss of possession in the middle of the pitch, launching an attack that ended with Raspadori scoring (74).
The match was the 40th meeting between the two teams, with Italy claiming victory 19 times, France 11 times, and 10 draws between them.
