Zinedine Zidane used his press conference to discuss France’s upcoming Nations League match against Italy at San Siro and to speak about his admiration for Juventus and Marcello Lippi.
France’s Nations League showdown with Italy
France will face Italy at San Siro on 12 November at 19.45 GMT (20.45 CET). France currently lead Nations League Group A1 with 10 points, followed by Italy on seven and Belgium on six.
Mbappé and other absentees
Zidane confirmed that Kylian Mbappé will not be on the bench for France against Italy on 12 November because of a hamstring issue.
“Mbappé will not be there, he felt some pain and we generally try to avoid risks for the players, but we hope to have him on Sunday,” said Zidane in his press conference.
Zidane also addressed the situations of Aurélien Tchouaméni and Marcus Thuram. “We sent Tchouameni and Thuram home because they were not in any condition to play on Thursday or Sunday,” said Zidane in his press conference.
Midfield and attacking options for France
Zidane confirmed that Warren Zaire-Emery will play in midfield for France.
Asked, with so many absentees in attack, who will start upfront against Italy, Zidane said: “The objective is to pick the best possible line-up, and despite the absences, we have a squad capable of doing well.”
Zidane on Juventus and Marcello Lippi
During the press conference, Zidane was asked if he would like to be the coach of Juventus one day, and he responded by highlighting the influence of Marcello Lippi.
“Yes, but you never know. Marcello Lippi taught me we must never stop, we’ve always got to keep pushing. At the start I didn’t play well in Turin, the fans and the media didn’t love me. I suffered a little, but Lippi told me I would play for his Juve. I owe him everything. I’d love one day to be at Juventus, why not, if I continue working as a coach,” said Zidane.
