Mbappe headlines Zidane's France squad, Pagis gets call-up

Kylian Mbappe led the France squad announced by coach Zinedine Zidane for their upcoming Nations League matches against Italy and Turkiye, following an injury sustained during a September international. Real Madrid's star player Mbappe, who was captain of Les Bleus, scored the winning goal in Zidane's first match as coach against Turkiye on September 25, but injured his knee during the game, which prevented him from participating in the team's remaining fixtures that window.

France won twice against Belgium and drew against Italy during that period. Mbappe has since returned to his club and scored eight times in seven matches for both La Liga and Champions League. France is missing Paris Saint-Germain players Ousmane Dembele and Maghnes Akliouche, as well as Rennes striker Esteban Lepaul for the double-header matches.

This leaves Marcus Thuram, who joins the attack for the first time, and Pablo Pagis, a 23-year-old attacking midfielder, in the squad. Pagis, who primarily plays as an attacking midfielder, earned his call-up due to the team's need for an alternative to Akliouche, who is a Paris FC player. Zidane explained that Pagis was on the long list and he wanted to see the player, describing him as interesting and different.

The France team will face Italy in Milan on November 12 and Turkiye in Bordeaux three days later, with the top two teams advancing to the quarter-finals next March.