Francesco Esposito delivered a decisive double at the San Siro to propel Italy to a commanding 3-1 victory over France, punishing the visitors for chronic vulnerabilities in defensive transition during a high-stakes tactical clash.
The encounter highlighted a stark tactical divide between Italian structural rigidity and French individual flair. Roberto Mancini set up his side to concede territory, ceding 65% possession to France while utilizing a compact mid-block designed to spring into rapid counter-attacks once the French high defensive line became stretched.
Zinedine Zidane deployed a 4-2-3-1 formation that frequently morphed into a 4-3-3 to create midfield overloads through Michael Olise and Bradley Barcola. The plan yielded an early breakthrough in the 10th minute when Olise struck the opening goal after France won a second ball inside the Italian box.
Despite dominating the ball and recording 18 total shots compared to Italy’s 11, France struggled defensively when possession broke down. With full-backs Malo Gusto and Adrien Truffert pushing high to maintain width, central defenders Dayot Upamecano and Jeremy Jacquet found themselves repeatedly isolated against Italy’s front line.
Italy capitalized on this spatial disconnect through a disciplined 4-3-3 shape. Sandro Tonali and Nicolo Barella aggressively squeezed the space whenever the French double-pivot of Adrien Rabiot and Lucas Da Cunha received passes with their backs to goal, forcing rushed clearances into central channels patrolled by Alessandro Bastoni and Giorgio Scalvini.
Italy used the flanks of Michael Kayode and Riccardo Calafiori during build-up play to pull French wingers deep, creating openings for Davide Frattesi to launch late surges into the penalty area. Esposito served as an effective focal point in attack, using his hold-up play to relieve pressure and bring Nicolo Cambiaghi into the match.
The tactical shift turned decisively in the 26th minute when a swift vertical transition caught the disorganized French defense, allowing Esposito to equalize. Italy’s expected goals metric of 2.54 showed the higher quality of their 11 attempts compared to France's 1.88 xG from their heavier volume of possession.
Mancini altered the dynamic further in the 62nd minute by introducing Federico Dimarco and Antonio Vergara. Dimarco made an immediate impact from a high wingback role, providing the assist for Frattesi to put Italy ahead in the 63rd minute while shifting the Azzurri into a temporary 3-5-2 defensive block.
Zidane responded in the 77th minute by bringing on Andy Diouf, Eduardo Camavinga, and Sael Kumbedi to inject energy and improve ball recovery. However, those changes proved reactive as the French structural flaws had already left their mark.
Esposito cemented the result in the 75th minute by converting a penalty kick to secure his second goal and extend Italy’s lead to 3-1. France’s late transition to a more direct 4-4-2 following the introduction of Eli Junior Kroupi failed to pierce the seasoned Italian defense, which grew increasingly compact as the match wound down.
While France dictated the tempo with 589 completed passes to Italy’s 316, their U-shaped circulation failed to breach the Italian low block. Mancini’s strategic gamble to sacrifice possession for spatial control and vertical efficiency ultimately defined the outcome at the San Siro.
