After a heartbreaking loss to Spain in the 2024 Euro semi-finals, France are back to start their UEFA Nations League journey this season. Italy weren’t any better in the Euros, as they have won only one of four games in the tournament. Let’s take a look at the stats and our analysis and picks for the France vs Italy matchup.
The two global football heavyweights open the turn of battles in Nations League 24/25, with Italy traveling to France for their first clash since 2018.
| ℹ️ Tournament: | UEFA Nations League 2024-25, League A, Group A2, Matchday 1 |
| ⚽️ Venue: | Parc des Princes Stadium, Paris, France |
| 🗓️ Date: | 6 September 2024 |
| ⏰ Time: | 6:45 p.m. GMT on Friday |
According to the best soccer online betting sites, France are the home favorites at 1.70 (7/10). A draw is offered at 3.90 (29/10), while Italy are the away underdogs at 5.20 (21/5) to beat Les Bleus in the first match of the group.
France and Italy haven’t played an official game since 2008 when the Azzurri beat Les Bleus in the group stage of the Euros. The head-to-head score between them is heavily on France’s side, as in the last ten games, France won seven, drew once, and Italy won twice.
| Group A2 Teams | Standings | Matches Played | Points |
|---|---|---|---|
| Belgium | 3rd | 0 | 0 |
| France | 1st | 0 | 0 |
| Israel | 4th | 0 | 0 |
| Italy | 2nd | 0 | 0 |
The top two teams in each group will qualify for the quarterfinals, while the third-place teams will face the runner-up of League B in the relegation playoffs, and the teams finishing last will get relegated directly to League B.
Before the competition starts, the bookies have France as big favorites to win this group with 1.45 (9/20) odds, while Belgium and Italy will fight for second place, and their odds to win the group are 4.50 (7/2) and 5.50 (9/2) respectively. Israel will most definitely finish last with odds of 68.0 (67/1) to win the group.
France’s last Nations League edition campaign was horrible, as they finished third in the Group A1 standings, consisting of Croatia, Denmark, and Austria. Les Bleus were very solid in the 2024 Euro tournament, having conceded only three goals in four games, but they have to step up offensively going further.
The new Real Madrid player, Kylian Mbappe, is back to captain the French team, while Manu Kone and Michael Olise are set to make their debuts with the senior team. Benjamin Pavard wasn’t picked for France’s squad for the first time in years.
The best sports betting sites in Italy believe that the Azzurri have a decent chance to get a positive result here, which is very possible if they bring their best performance. Italy have won back-to-back bronze medals in the last two Nations League editions, so they always perform well in this tournament.
Sandro Tonali is finally back for Italy after serving a ten-month suspension. The new Liverpool player, Federico Chiesa, was dropped from the squad due to lack of fitness, while Marco Brescianini and Caleb Okoli got called up for the first time.
2 (67%)
(33%) 1
Italy have a solid defense that can keep up with the out-of-form France attack. The Azzurri have lost only three of 14 games under Luciano Spalletti so far. The team is more balanced now after Sandro Tonali’s comeback in the midfield. The legal French bookmakers have some enticing odds for Italy to win or draw this game, so we will go with that, especially since they always perform well in the UEFA Nations League and take the competition seriously, unlike Les Bleus.
3 (100%)
0
Arsenal signed the Italian defender Riccardo Calafiori in this transfer window, but he has only played 43 minutes with the Gunners in the league so far, so he isn’t at his best fitness-wise. Calafiori was booked in two of his last three starts for Italy in the 2024 Euro, and he is known for his aggressive defensive tackles and receiving a lot of cards. France have a couple of fast players in the offense, so they might trouble him with their pace in committing a lot of fouls as well.
3 (100%)
0
France have had a lot of low-scoring matches lately, as they have gone under the total in six of their last seven games in all competitions. Italy have gone under the total in seven of their last nine games as well, so this is a matchup between two defensive-minded teams that can easily end 0-0 or 1-1. Both teams are out of form offensively as well, so that makes the under more appealing in this match.
This is expected to be an exciting match between two big teams, and we will be going with the Azzurri to get a positive result. Make sure you use our 2024 Italy vs France betting predictions and bet them at the legal bookmakers in Europe to have more fun watching the game.
