Zinedine Zidane hopes Kylian Mbappe will face Turkey after France lose to Italy

Zinedine Zidane says he expects Kylian Mbappe to be available for France’s next Nations League match against Turkey, despite the injury which forced him to remain behind after their 3-1 defeat by Italy at San Siro.

France manager Zidane said he did not believe Mbappe’s problem was serious and suggested the forward had stayed with the squad in the hope of playing in the next fixture.

“Yes, I hope so,” Zidane told French broadcaster TF1 when asked whether Mbappe could feature. “That is why he stayed. I do not think it is anything serious, but the idea is to get him playing.”

France were beaten by Italy in Milan on Thursday, although Zidane said there had been some encouraging aspects to their performance, particularly before the interval.

“There were some good things, especially in the first half, but we lost the match, so there were certainly some difficult moments this evening,” he said.

Zidane felt his side were second best in the individual battles and said that was part of the experience required to improve.

“In the challenges and one-on-one situations, we were not as good,” he added. “That is part of the learning process.”

The former France midfielder also criticised his team’s defensive reaction after Italy scored their second goal.

“We became disorganised, especially defensively, as soon as Italy scored their second goal,” said Zidane.

He urged his players not to overreact to the result, insisting that difficult matches could provide useful lessons at this stage.

“We have to remain calm,” he said. “It is better to play these kinds of matches now and then see how we respond. We must not panic. Ryan Cherki is right about that, and I said the same thing to the players.”

Desiree Doue suffers dental problem

Zidane also provided an update on Desiree Doue, who experienced a problem with his teeth during the match.

“I think one of his teeth has moved out of position, and we will take care of him from tomorrow,” said the France boss.

Italy’s victory was their first against France on home soil since 5 May 1962, when they won 2-1 in Florence. France took the lead through Jean-Claude Piumi in the 28th minute, but Italy’s Jose Altafini scored twice, in the 47th and 51st minutes, to secure the win.

The teams have met several times in Italy since then without another home victory for the Azzurri. France had won their most recent visit to San Siro, beating Italy 3-1 in November 2024 in the Nations League.

The match also marked an unwanted international record for France defender Dayot Upamecano. It was the first time France had conceded three goals in a match in which he played the full regulation period of 90 minutes.

The previous occasion on which France conceded three goals with Upamecano on the pitch was the 2022 World Cup final against Argentina. That match went to extra time, meaning the three goals were conceded across 120 minutes before Argentina won on penalties.