Kylian Mbappe Leads France Squad for Nations League Matches Against Italy and Turkey

Kylian Mbappe will lead the France national team in their upcoming Nations League matches against Italy and Turkey. Coach Zinedine Zidane announced the squad on Friday, which includes a debut call-up for Pablo Pagis.

Mbappe, who plays for Real Madrid, is the captain of the team. He scored the winning goal in Zidane’s first match in charge against Turkey on September 25. However, he suffered a knee injury during that game and missed the next three matches. Despite his absence, France managed to win two games against Belgium and draw with Italy.

Since returning to play for Real Madrid, Mbappe has been in great form, scoring eight goals in seven matches across La Liga and the Champions League. France will be without Ousmane Dembele and Esteban Lepaul for these matches, leading to the recall of Marcus Thuram and the inclusion of Pagis, who has impressed this season with Paris FC.

Pablo Pagis, 23, primarily plays as an attacking midfielder and is the son of former Marseille player Mickael Pagis. Zidane also welcomed back Aurelien Tchouameni to the midfield, replacing Manu Kone, and made changes in defense with Leny Yoro and Malo Gusto stepping in for Jules Kounde and Maxence Lacroix.

France will face Italy in Milan on November 12 and then play Turkey in Bordeaux three days later. They currently lead Nations League Group A1 with 10 points from four matches, three points ahead of Italy. The top two teams from the group will move on to the quarter-finals next March.