Zidane: We Deserved Better
Paris (AFP) – France coach Zinedine Zidane insisted that his side “deserved better” than the 1-1 draw with Italy at the Stade de France in Paris, during the third matchday of Group A1 of the UEFA Nations League.
After the match, Zidane said at the press conference: “I am satisfied with the content, but not with the result. We deserved better, and we had a chance to score a second goal. I am proud of my players and what they delivered. We created a decent number of chances, and (Italian goalkeeper Gianluigi) Donnarumma was excellent, making two or three exceptional saves. That’s part of the game. So we must keep working; this was only our third match.”
This was Zidane’s first match in charge on French soil since succeeding Didier Deschamps, having secured two away victories in the competition against Turkey (1-0) and Belgium (1-0).
He added: “We dominated possession in the first half, but we lacked attacking thrust from our midfielders in the final 30 meters. However, we did better in the second half. Our attacking play was good in the first half and better in the second. We wanted to win for our fans, who supported us. I was moved and delighted to return to the Stade de France.”
When asked about Ousmane Dembele’s performance, which appeared somewhat disappointing, Zidane clarified that he found it satisfactory. He said: “Ousmane remains Ousmane, and I am satisfied with him. He is everywhere on the pitch and often loses his position. I don’t have much to blame him for; he created a decent number of chances for himself.”
For their part, Italy, led by Roberto Mancini in his second stint as head coach, confirmed their resurgence with a hard-fought draw following their home defeat to Belgium (0-2) and a convincing away win over Turkey (4-1).
In the same group, Belgium regained their balance with a comprehensive 3-0 victory over hosts Turkey, who suffered their third consecutive defeat.
The only negative for Kevin De Bruyne was receiving a yellow card that will rule him out of Monday’s fourth-matchday clash against France.
Belgium opened their campaign in this edition with a win over the Azzurri, before suffering their first defeat under new Dutch coach Marc Van Bommel at the hands of Les Bleus.
In the opening of the fourth matchday today, top-ranked Greece (7 points) will host third-placed Germany (4 points), while second-placed Netherlands (5 points) will welcome last-placed Serbia (0 points) in Group B2.
