# Italy Beat France 3-1 to Hand Zidane First Loss

- Link: https://the-timenews.com/italy-beat-france-zidane-nations-league/
- Published: 2026-11-12T22:31:01+00:00
- Author: The Time News

Gianluigi Donnarumma handed France an early gift at San Siro, yet Italy refused 
to crumble. Instead, the Azzurri roared back behind a brace from 21-year-old striker
Francesco Pio Esposito, as **Italy beat France** 3-1 on Thursday night to knock 
Zinedine Zidane off his clean sheet as national team boss.

The victory gave Italy their first home win over their cross-border rivals since
1962. It also hoisted Roberto Mancini’s squad to the top of Nations League Group
A1, completely swinging the momentum heading into Sunday’s group decider.

**Also read:** [Kane Set for England Appearance Record in Nations League](https://the-timenews.com/kane-england-appearance-record/)

For Zidane, the rainy evening in Milan delivered a harsh reality check. France took
the pitch without injured superstars Kylian Mbappe and Ousmane Dembele, but they
still grabbed the early advantage before Italy’s relentless pressure unraveled their
backline.

## Francesco Pio Esposito leads the comeback

France struck after just 10 minutes when Donnarumma committed an unforced blunder.
The Italy goalkeeper passed the ball straight to Michael Olise just outside the 
penalty area. Olise danced past a defender and slid the ball home for his fifth 
goal in five Nations League matches.

Only England captain Harry Kane has scored more in this tournament cycle. France
pressed forward with Adrien Rabiot wearing the captain’s armband for the first time.
Desire Doue smacked the side netting, Donnarumma parried a fierce drive from Rabiot,
and Lucas Da Cunha dragged a half-volley inches wide of the post.

Italy looked pinned back until the 26th minute. Nicolo Cambiaghi sprinted toward
the left byline, slipped past his marker, and whipped a low cross into the six-yard
box. Esposito met it on the run, redirecting the ball past French goalkeeper Mike
Maignan with a deft flick.

The equalizer flipped the game on its head. Two minutes later, Francesco’s older
brother, Sebastiano Esposito, forced Maignan into a full-stretch save. France responded
right before the interval when Bradley Barcola cut inside and rattled the foot of
the far post.

## Missed penalties and second-half fireworks

The pace never slowed after the break. Donnarumma redeemed his early mistake by 
tipping a blistering strike from Rayan Cherki onto the woodwork. Italy flew straight
down the other end, where Maignan denied Cambiaghi from point-blank range.

On the hour mark, Malo Gusto clipped Cambiaghi inside the box to concede a spot 
kick. Sebastiano Esposito took charge of the ball with a chance to give Italy the
lead, but he blasted his penalty wide of the target.

Italian heads did not drop. Barely three minutes later, substitute wing-back Federico
Dimarco delivered a pinpoint delivery across the box. Davide Frattesi met it with
a crisp low drive to make it 2-1.

France scrambled to regain composure, but Dayot Upamecano made a clumsy challenge
on Italian substitute Antonio Vergara inside the area. This time, Francesco Pio 
Esposito stepped up. He tucked his spot kick into the bottom corner to seal the 
win.

## Why Italy beat France matters in Group A1

When **Italy beat France** in Milan, the group standings shifted dramatically. Both
teams sit on 10 points after five rounds, but Italy hold top spot thanks to their
superior head-to-head record.

Belgium sit right on their heels in third place with nine points after cruising 
past bottom-dwellers Turkiye. That keeps three teams in contention for the quarterfinal
spots before the final round.

Mancini has now stretched Italy’s unbeaten run to four matches in his second spell
as national coach. His tactical shifts and faith in younger attackers have renewed
a side that struggled for goals in recent campaigns.

The state of Group A1 heading into the weekend:

 * Italy: 10 points (head-to-head advantage over France)
 * France: 10 points
 * Belgium: 9 points
 * Turkiye: 0 points (relegated)

## Harry Kane sets England cap record at Wembley

While Italy celebrated in Milan, history was made in London. Harry Kane marked his
record-breaking 126th cap for England by firing home the winning goal in a 2-1 victory
over Croatia at Wembley.

The 33-year-old Bayern Munich striker moved past former goalkeeper Peter Shilton,
who had held the all-time appearance record for England since 1989. Shilton stood
on the Wembley turf before kickoff to hand Kane a commemorative award in front of
80,400 supporters.

England looked in trouble after letting slip an early lead and conceding a soft 
equalizer. In the 64th minute, Kane won the match from the penalty spot. He drove
the ball straight down the center past Dominik Livakovic for his 92nd international
goal, securing England’s place in the Nations League quarterfinals.

Attention now turns back to Group A1, where Italy travel to face Belgium and France
host Turkiye on Sunday to settle qualification for the knockout rounds.

_Source: [Al Jazeera](https://www.aljazeera.com/sports/2026/11/12/italy-fight-back-to-beat-france-3-1-and-move-top-of-nations-league-group)_

### Related Articles

 * [Harry Kane England Moments Highlighted as Striker Targets Caps Record](https://the-timenews.com/harry-kane-england-moments-milestone/)
 * [Kylian Mbappe Injury Doubt Clouds France Ahead of Italy Nations League Clash](https://the-timenews.com/mbappe-injury-doubt-france-italy-nations-league/)
 * [Does Jordan Pickford Face Serious Competition for His England Place?](https://the-timenews.com/jordan-pickford-england-place-competition/)

### Share this:

 * [  Facebook ](https://the-timenews.com/italy-beat-france-zidane-nations-league/?share=facebook)
 * [  X ](https://the-timenews.com/italy-beat-france-zidane-nations-league/?share=x)
 * [  LinkedIn ](https://the-timenews.com/italy-beat-france-zidane-nations-league/?share=linkedin)

### Like this:

Like Loading…