The qualification was secured even before the last match, now all that is needed is to maintain the lead to cross the finish line first. Returning from Brussels with the qualification to the quarter-finals of the Nations League in the bag, tomorrow night (20:45 CET, live on Rai 1 - referee Slovenian Vincic), Italy will face France to defend their supremacy in the standings: the Azzurri will only need a draw or even to lose by just one goal in virtue of the 3-1 success of last September 6th in Paris. The result will have its weight, given that first place in the group would allow Italy, already the top seed in the World Cup qualifying draw, to appear in the first group also in the draw for the Nations League quarter-final pairings scheduled for 22 November in Nyon. It would mean drawing one of the runners-up in the other three groups, effectively easing the path to the Finals in June.

Luciano Spalletti said in a press conference after thanking the Inter management for hosting the Italy team at the Pinetina: ’It will be easy to try to win the game, we might do some more thinking, but I am sure we will play the game we have to do to dedicate it to all those people who love us. The tie can only come from the two teams not winning at the same time. It is perfect to play tomorrow's match with these results and this ranking,’ he added in an interview with Vivo Azzurro TV, ’then it is clear that we will have to make a superior effort against an opponent with enormous potential.'

On Thursday in Brussels, Italy won their fourth win in their last five matches and everything suggests that, without Pellegrini's expulsion in the match at the Stadio Olimpico against the Red Devils, they would have gone clear. But, beyond the results, what captures the rebirth of the Italy team after the European Championships is a team that entertains and has fun on the pitch. Also thanks to a technical and rotating midfield, which gives no focal points to the opponents: ‘Nowadays you have to be able to sense the spaces that are created, you have to go and play in tighter spaces and be better at keeping the ball in the narrow spaces. When I see Real Madrid, Manchester City and Barcelona playing, it seems to me that their best talent is to do the normal things well again and again. There is also the playing style in cups, but in the big teams I see normality as the focus.'

SPACE FOR KEAN. Once again the Azzurri will be back on the pitch just three days after the first match, but the coach does not seem inclined to make too many changes: ‘The intention is to maintain the framework of the previous match. Fatigue is often mental, it is more difficult for it to be muscular. When players manage to have good matches, fatigue is more easily disposed of. I am convinced that today we will see a training session where the ball will travel hard. After playing the last part of the match in Brussels, Moise Kean could find himself playing from the first minute: ‘I liked the way he entered the pitch. It's possible that he'll be in the match because he's in great condition: he's a one-man unit, he's good at keeping the ball and also at attacking in wide spaces.'

FULL OF AFFECTION. The game will be played in a sold-out Stadio Meazza, an extra boost for a team that played the first match in its history against France in Milan in May 1910 (6-2 with a hat-trick from Lana and goals from Fossati, Rizzi and Debernardi): ‘Knowing that the stadium will be full tomorrow and that the other night, when we played at the same time as Sinner, we had 7 million television viewers watching, imposes a deep commitment, which we will have to show in the development of the match.' And speaking of Sinner, whom he compared to Chiesa last March, for the coach it is better to avoid new juxtapositions. Even if there is a player in the Azzurri group who has something in common with the world tennis number one: ‘Maldini gives me the impression of having the easy shot, of having elegance within substance.'

20TH AZZURRI APPEARANCE. Tomorrow's match will be the 20th game as head coach for Luciano Spalletti. The record is 11 wins, 5 draws and 3 defeats, one of which is really hard to forget: ‘I think there was one match that was wrong, the one with Switzerland. And that's something I carry with me because I hold myself very responsible for that defeat there. Afterwards we tried to do different things and some of them we did correctly. But that defeat doesn't make me forget anything or anyone, not even a World Cup qualifier. In some ways it's good to carry it around with you, you have to remember that if you don't do things right the stone is always around the corner.'

GIGI RIVA AS A MODEL. In the pre-match Italy vs France, the Federation will celebrate Gigi Riva, the Azzurri champion who would have been 80 years old on 7 November: ‘He is a symbol,’ underlined Spalletti, ‘with his few words he determined a lot on the field and we too must show our qualities without talking a lot. "Rombo di Tuono" is a perfect nickname: he made noise with his silence, while when he played he fired those cannonballs that made people talk about him.'

DONNARUMMA. Gigio Donnarumma, who made his Italy debut against France on 1 September 2016, taking over from Gigi Buffon and becoming the youngest goalkeeper to have worn the Azzurri shirt, will return to the stadium that was his home ground in his AC Milan days: ‘Tomorrow will be a special match,' he said in the press conference, 'coming back to San Siro will be exciting. There will be an incredible atmosphere also because of us, who have managed to bring out emotions in all Italians. We're looking forward to a great game in front of a lot of fans. We want to play great football, suffering when we have to suffer and showing our love for this shirt.’ There will be no Mbappé, his former team-mate at Paris Saint Germain: ‘If he had been there, Kylian could have given us a lot of trouble, but they have many other strong players with great legs who can create problems for us. They have a few absences, but we know the quality of the substitutes. They didn't score in their last game and they will be even angrier, considering our win at home. We will find an aggressive France side that will want to make up for it.'

After conceding goals in their last eight matches, Italy returned to keeping their goal unbeaten on Thursday in Brussels. This was also thanks to the Italian goalkeeper, who was decisive in the second half with saves on Trossard and Openda: ‘At the European Championships, when the match was over and I went back to the hotel, I was thinking that we were struggling to dribble and that when the opponent attacked it always seemed like they could hurt us. Already from the game in France you could see the compactness of the team, now they struggle to score against us. Then goals can be taken when you face strong teams, but you can see that desire to attack the opponent and defend all together. I think this will lead us to very important results. The turning point came in September, when we saw a regenerated Italy team after the disappointment of the European Championship: ‘The difference is being made by the group, in addition to everything the coach and staff are doing. The coach has found the right balance, the medicine to make Italy return to being Italy after the disappointment of the European Championship. The difficult thing is to continue with the performance, we must continue to work, improve, have fun and make people enjoy themselves. This is a healthy group, I am seeing the spirit of the 2021 European Championship again.'