Toronto Star
· collected 2026-10-02 · by Jerome Pugmire The Associated Press
Zinedine Zidane's first home game as France’s national team coach ended in a 1-1 draw against Italy on Friday at Stade de France. Michael Olise scored for France in the 55th minute, but Alessandro Bastoni equalized later in the match despite strong play from Italian goalkeeper Gianluigi Donnarumma. The article highlights the enthusiastic reception Zidane received and his statement of pride in his team's performance despite not securing a win.
Written locally by qwen2.5:14b on 2026-10-03,
using this article's own text rather than the other coverage of the
same event (that is the story summary below).
Story summary
On Friday, October 2 at 8:45pm local time (18:45 GMT) in Stade de France, Saint-Denis, France, France faced Italy in a UEFA Nations League Group A1 match. This was Zinedine Zidane's first home game as the new coach of France following Didier Deschamps' departure. Despite Kylian Mbappe being out with an injury, France started strong and scored through Michael Olise in the 55th minute from a free kick that hit the crossbar. However, Italy equalized when Alessandro Bastoni scored a low shot in the second half. Dayot Upamecano was sent off late for France, but they managed to hold on for a 1-1 draw. Despite not securing a victory, Zidane praised his team's performance, noting it as encouraging. The match can be viewed through various broadcasters such as La Chaine L'Équipe and TF1+ in France, RAI PLAY and Sky Italia in Italy, FOX Sports and FuboTV in the US, among others.
Written for “France Vs Italy Nations League” on 2026-10-05,
grounded in this article and the 3 other(s) covering the same event.
PARIS (AP) — Zinedine Zidane ‘s first home game in charge of France ended with a 1-1 draw against Italy in the Nations League on Friday.
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game → end → Friday
French fans got an exciting game at Stade de France but not the result they expected, mainly because of Italy goalkeeper Gianluigi Donnarumma’s performance.
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they → get → performance
Michael Olise put France ahead in the 55th minute with a curling shot from 20 meters which went in off the crossbar, following a short free kick taken by Rayan Cherki.
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which → put → Cherki
Poor defending midway through the second half allowed central defender Alessandro Bastoni to run through and clip a low shot inside the right post.
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Bastoni → allow → post
“I’m disappointed for the players because we deserved better.
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we → ’m → players
We had chances to kill the game off but we didn’t and football’s like that sometimes,” Zidane said.
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Zidane → have → that
Honestly, I’m proud of how we played.”
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we → ’m → ?
Roar of approval
When Zidane’s name was read out by the stadium announcer after the teams were announced, a roar filled Stade de France
Fans then broke out into chants of “Zizou, Zizou” — the affectionate nickname Zidane is known by among French soccer fans — and one banner read “Bienvenue Chez Toi” (Welcome Home).
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banner → read → Toi
“It was touching,” Zidane said of the ovation he received.
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he → say → ovation
“We would have loved to give the stadium and the whole nation a victory, but it wasn’t to be.”
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it → love → victory
Zidane’s appointment as national team coach has been met with a wave of enthusiasm.
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appointment → meet → enthusiasm
A train station close to the stadium even had a message waiting for those arriving: “Welcome to Zinedine Zidane’s first game in charge,” a woman said over the public address system.
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woman → have → system
The 54-year-old Zidane was appointed France coach after the World Cup, replacing Didier Deschamps.
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Zidane → appoint → Deschamps
He won his first two games 1-0, away to Turkey and Belgium in the Nations League, with Olise scoring a solo winner against the Belgians.
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Olise → win → Belgians
Zidane was facing Italy for the first time since his infamous headbutt in the final of the 2006 World Cup, which saw him sent off in extra time in the last game of his stellar career.
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him → face → career
The stadium itself holds special value to Zidane.
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stadium → hold → Zidane
He scored the first goal in a friendly against Spain when Stade de France was inaugurated in January 1998, and his two powerful headers later that year helped France win the World Cup for the first time with a 3-0 win over Brazil in the final.
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France → score → final
His new tenure began with a 2-0 home loss to Belgium, followed by a 4-1 win at Turkey and now a solid performance against a World Cup semifinalist.
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tenure → begin → semifinalist
France tops their League A group with seven points, followed by Belgium on six following a 3-0 win in Turkey.
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France → top → Turkey
Les Bleus face Belgium at Stade de France on Monday.
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Bleus → face → Monday
During one first half attack, Zidane crouched over with his hands on his knees as if trying to get a closer look and then gesticulated with his hands to direct the move — even though his players had their backs to him.
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players → crouch → him
Zidane had said before the game that Italy remains a dangerous side, even despite poor recent results.
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Italy → say → results
Striker Moise Kean missed a close-range chance early on for Italy, shooting straight at goalkeeper Mike Maignan from meters out.
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Kean → miss → Maignan
Donnarumma made a double save from Ousmae Dembélé and Désiré Doué early in the second half, then produced a brilliant low save to deny Adrien Rabiot moments after Italy’s equalizer.
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Donnarumma → make → equalizer
After France defender Dayot Upamecano was sent off late in the game for picking up a second yellow card, Donnarumma superbly clawed away Eduardo Camavinga’s shot in stoppage time.
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Donnarumma → send → time
The Aporia
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