After France's 1-1 draw with Italy at home in the third matchday of the UEFA Nations League group stage, French head coach Zidane spoke to the media.

On the match

Yes, we struggled in the final moments. We maintained good possession until we got about 60 to 70 meters from their goal, but then we lacked the ability to break down their defense. We did well at the start of the second half, but after scoring the first goal, we needed a second to give ourselves more comfort and better control. So... That said, Italy is always like that; they're a team that never gives up and never steps back. They played an excellent match in Turkey previously and won it, showing good form, and they played very well again tonight.

What disappointed you most tonight? Was it the missed opportunity to score a second goal and extend the lead? By the way, Olise's free kick was truly beautiful...

Very beautiful. Yes, exactly, because we had the chance to score that second goal. Football is always like this: when you have the opportunity to extend the lead and secure the win, you have to take it and score. So... but that's how things go. Still, I'm satisfied with the effort and the performance of the players tonight.

One last question: yesterday you said, "France has changed, Italy has changed, this will be a new match." Did you predict the match would unfold this way? Because in reality, perhaps you didn't expect Italy to show such aggression while maintaining such a tight defense to wait for you...

No, no, I did predict that. Yes, yes, I predicted that completely. Italy played their style; they always are, as always, extremely solid and secure in defense. Moreover, they have two or three key players who can turn the match and make a difference at any moment. So I predicted from the start that this would be a difficult battle; I made that clear before the match. However, perhaps our performance tonight deserved more and better still, that's all.

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