On the eve of Italy-France in the Nations League, Gianluigi Donnarumma spoke of the clash with his current teammates Barcola, Dembélé or Zaire-Emery. He also had a word for Kylian Mbappé, who was absent but who, he assures, would have caused a lot of trouble for Italy.
A special match awaits for Gianluigi Donnarumma on Sunday evening. Italy-France, the last meeting of the Nations League group stage, will indeed be played at San Siro, the stadium where he made his debut with AC Milan in 2015, and where he built his reputation. But this clash will also be an opportunity for Donnarumma to meet a handful of players he meets on a daily basis at Paris Saint-Germain.
At a press conference, the Italian goalkeeper showed himself ready to face his usual teammates. “We will have to suffer, I know their attackers,” he warned. “Barcola, Kolo Muani, but also Zaire-Emery, they can all create problems for us.” Donnarumma also expects revenge from the French, after the defeat against Italy last September.
“Mbappé? He would have caused us a lot of trouble”
“It will be an aggressive team, which will want to make up for it after the last match despite the absent players,” imagines the Italian. Positive point for Donnarumma on the other hand, the absence of Mbappé. “It will be a significant absence, if he had been there, he would have caused us a lot of trouble,” he admitted. “But there are other players like Barcola, they have a lot of quality and incredible talent. “
Italy currently leads the group, three points ahead of France. It would therefore take a clear victory for the Blues, by at least a two-goal margin, to shake up the rankings and see Deschamps' men finish first. Whatever happens, both teams will qualify for the quarter-finals of the competition in March.
