Mancini tells absent Mbappe: France have enough quality to trouble Italy

Roberto Mancini joked that Kylian Mbappe should not risk playing for France against Italy because the Real Madrid forward already has the Champions League to focus on.

France meet Italy in Milan on Thursday in the Nations League, one month after the sides drew 1-1 in France. Mbappe will miss the Group A1 encounter after failing to recover from a hamstring injury.

France manager Zinedine Zidane confirmed the 27-year-old would not be involved at a news conference.

“Yes, Kylian will not be available tomorrow. He felt some pain and we will not take any risks with him,” said Zidane. “It is unfortunate to lose players, but that is part of the game. I hope the injury is not serious and that he returns on Sunday.”

Before Mbappe’s absence had been confirmed, Italy manager Mancini had made light of the France captain’s potential involvement while speaking ahead of the match.

“I advise Mbappe not to take any risks,” Mancini said. “He has the Champions League to play with Real Madrid. Alongside Mbappe, there are excellent players such as Doue, Olise and Barcola. France remain a great team.”

France face injury problems

Mbappe is not the only absentee affecting Zidane’s plans for the two matches against Italy and Turkey.

Aurelien Tchouameni has left the squad after suffering an injury, while Marcus Thuram and Pierre Kalulu have also been ruled out after initially being included in the manager’s plans.

France’s original squad had already been weakened by several attacking injuries, including those sustained by Ousmane Dembele, Maghnes Akliouche and Esteban Lepaul.

Zidane initially called up Thuram before losing him to injury. He then made further changes, bringing in Eli Junior Kroupi as his replacement and later selecting Mayulu after Tchouameni was injured.

France can secure quarter-final place

Thursday’s match carries significance beyond the meeting between the top two teams in the group. France can secure qualification for the Nations League quarter-finals and potentially settle top spot before the final round of fixtures.

France lead the group with 10 points from four matches. Italy have seven points, Belgium six and Turkey have yet to register a point.

The previous meeting finished 1-1 after Lucas Da Cunha made an error that led to Italy’s equaliser. France’s immediate priority in Milan is to secure a place in the last eight before turning their attention to winning the group.

A draw would be enough for France to guarantee a finish in the top two and qualify for the quarter-finals, according to French network RMC.

The result would also leave France clear of the direct battle between Italy and Belgium for the second qualification place. Those two sides meet in Brussels on Sunday, meaning a point at San Siro would spare France the need to rely on complicated calculations in the final round.