France held by Italy in Zidane's homecoming after Olise stunner

Saint-Denis witnessed a closely contested match between Italy and France on Friday, as Michael Olise netted a remarkable goal, but Italy emerged victorious with a 1-1 draw. Zinedine Zidane, now coaching Les Bleus, made his debut as a manager in front of his hometown crowd at the Stade de France. Olise scored a spectacular solo effort in the second half of the match, which came four days after he scored a similar goal against Belgium, helping France secure a 1-0 win.

However, his goal was negated by Alessandro Bastoni's equalizer for Italy in the second half, preventing Zidane from achieving three wins in three matches of his coaching tenure. France, currently leading UEFA Nations League Group A1 with seven points, will face Belgium in their final match of the two-week international window on Monday.

Italy, on the other hand, will host Turkiye in their next game. Zidane, a former Ballon d'Or winner, played his first game at the Stade de France since his last appearance as a player in 2006, when he was sent off for headbutting Marco Materazzi in the World Cup final. Despite Zidane's absence, the French team lacked a key player with Kylian Mbappe returning to his club after recovering from a knee injury.

Italy, rebuilding under Roberto Mancini, remained the happier team with the draw, thanks to goalkeeper Gianluigi Donnarumma's numerous saves throughout the match.