After qualifying for the quarter-finals of the Nations League, Italy and France face off to try to finish at the top of the group.
Italy confirmed their place in the knockout stages of the Nations League after recording a narrow 1-0 victory over Belgium in their previous outing. The Azzurri needed just a point from the match to advance to the quarters and Sandro Tonali’s 11th-minute goal was enough to see them through. Italy have had their share of lasting moments under Luciano Spalletti, but a renewed approach has been noticed from him during this international break. Spalletti hopes to finish the group stage without further injuries and is expected to rotate his team.
Meanwhile, France are aiming for group leadership when they meet Italy in Milan this evening. The arithmetic requires the Blues to win by two goals or more to topple the Azzurri in the standings. However, it remains to be seen whether Didier Deschamps is ready to push his players to this point. France were left frustrated in their last match against Israel as they were held to a goalless draw and Kylian Mbappe’s absence from the team was the focus of discussion as the pressure returned to Deschamps. Mike Maignan and Theo Hernandez should feature on their field this evening while Marcus Thuram should partner Kolo Muani from the start.
Here are the expected queues for the match according to Sky Italy:
Italy (3-5-1-1): Donnarumma; Di Lorenzo, Buongiorno, Bastoni; Cambiaso, Barella, Locatelli, Tonali, Dimarco; Maldini; Retegui.
France (4-2-3-1): Maignan; Koundé, Saliba, Konaté, Digne; Koné, Rabiot; Olise, Nkunku, Coman; Thuram.
Trambak Bhacteurjee | GIFN
