Rome and Izmit take the Nations League spotlight on Friday night, with Italy beginning Roberto Mancini’s second spell in charge against Belgium and Zinedine Zidane opening his France tenure on the Turkish coast. The League A fixtures follow an eventful first set of results across the continent on Thursday.
Quick facts
- Thursday’s League A results: Norway 3-2 Denmark, Netherlands 1-1 Germany, Portugal 1-0 Wales and Greece 2-1 Serbia.
- Italy host Belgium at the Stadio Olimpico in Rome, while Turkey face France in Izmit, Kocaeli.
- Northern Ireland beat Georgia with a stoppage-time goal in League B.
- Armenia defeated Latvia 2-0 in League C.
- Hungary-Ukraine, Poland-Bosnia and Herzegovina, Sweden-Romania and Montenegro-Cyprus are also scheduled on Friday.
Mancini returns to the Azzurri bench after leaving the national team in 2023. His first assignment is a demanding home meeting with Belgium, as Italy seek a route out of a prolonged period of uncertainty.
The Italian side have missed the past three World Cups and turn again to the coach who previously led them. The match in the capital is a first examination of whether Mancini can restore belief among supporters who want Italy to feel competitive with Europe’s leading teams again.
Italy’s named selection includes Gianluigi Donnarumma in goal, with Giovanni Di Lorenzo, Gianluca Mancini and Riccardo Calafiori in defence. Nicolò Barella, Romano and Sandro Tonali are listed in midfield, while Niccolò Cambiaghi, Esposito and Moise Kean lead the attacking group.
Belgium have selected Senne Lammens; Timothy Castagne, Ngoy, Brandon Mechele and Maxim De Cuyper; Youri Tielemans and Nicolas Raskin; Moreira, Kevin De Bruyne and Godts; with Charles De Ketelaere up front.
Further east, France begin under Zidane, the former Real Madrid coach succeeding Didier Deschamps. The fixture against Turkey is the first chance to see how one of French football’s defining figures approaches his new international role.
Turkey’s team features Uğurcan Çakır; Zeki Çelik, Merih Demiral and Abdülkerim Bardakcı; Aydın, Salih Özcan, İsmail Yüksek and Ferdi Kadıoğlu; Arda Güler, Can Uzun and Barış Alper Yılmaz.
France name Mike Maignan in goal, behind Jules Koundé, Dayot Upamecano, Maxence Lacroix and Adrien Truffert. Manu Koné, Adrien Rabiot and Rayan Cherki form the midfield, with Michael Olise, Kylian Mbappé and Ousmane Dembélé in attack.
Friday’s programme also extends beyond League A. Hungary meet Ukraine, Poland take on Bosnia and Herzegovina, and Sweden play Romania in League B, while Montenegro welcome Cyprus in League C.
