Bastoni hails Italy’s fight after France draw in Nations League

Alessandro Bastoni said he never lost faith in himself after scoring for Italy in their 1-1 draw with France in the Nations League.

The Inter defender returned to the Italy side after completing a suspension imposed following his dismissal against Bosnia in the European play-off for the 2026 World Cup finals in March.

“It was a difficult match and we knew that, although that is nothing new, but I am extremely happy with the team’s performance,” Bastoni told Italian broadcaster Rai Sport.

“We fought fiercely, suffered, and even ruined some of France’s goals, when they were preparing for a big celebration. We knew we were not coming here for an easy game, and that is exactly how it turned out.”

Bastoni put Italy ahead before France secured a draw. He said scoring was pleasing, but the priority immediately changed to protecting the result.

“Scoring another goal is certainly a pleasure, but as soon as it happened I felt we had to make sure we did not concede again, otherwise we would lose the draw,” he added. “This is a good result that strengthens our confidence for the future.”

The goal was Bastoni’s second in successive matches for Italy. He had also scored in the 4-1 victory over Turkey after returning to the national team.

“I did not expect to score twice in two consecutive matches for Italy, but I never lost confidence in myself,” he said.

“I will not allow one or two situations to spoil a career that has lasted for more than 300 matches. I thank my family for their support and I hope my consistency will be viewed as something positive.”

The draw was the first between France and Italy in six meetings across competitive and friendly fixtures. Their previous stalemate came on 8 September 2007, in qualifying for Euro 2008.

France moved to seven points at the top of the group, while Italy climbed to four points but remained third.

Belgium strengthened their position in the same group with a 3-0 win over Turkey. They are second on six points, while Turkey remain bottom without a point.