Alessandro Bastoni, the Italy national team player, emphasized after scoring against France in the UEFA Nations League that he had not lost confidence in himself.
Alessandro Bastoni
Club: Inter
Bastoni returned to play for the Italian national team after serving his suspension following his red card against Bosnia in the European playoff for the 2026 World Cup finals last March.
Bastoni said via the Italian Rai Sport channel: "It was a difficult match, and we knew that, which is nothing new, but I am very happy with the team's performance."
He added, "We fought fiercely and suffered, even spoiling some of France's goals when they were preparing for a big celebration. We knew we weren't coming here for a stroll, and that is exactly what happened."
He continued, "It is certainly a pleasure to score another goal, but once it happened, I felt we had to ensure we didn't concede any more goals, otherwise we would lose the draw. This is a good result that boosts our confidence for the future."
He concluded, "I did not expect to score two goals in two consecutive matches with Italy, but I never lost faith in myself. I will not let one or two situations ruin my career, which spans over 300 matches. I thank my family for their support, and I hope my consistency is viewed positively."
Since returning to the national team, Bastoni has scored against Turkey in a 4-1 win and in the 1-1 draw with France.
The match between the two teams ended in a draw for the first time after six games, both official and friendly.
The last draw between the two teams dates back to September 8, 2007, in the qualifiers for Euro 2008.
With this draw, France reached seven points at the top of the group, while Italy's tally rose to four points in third place.
Belgium defeated their opponent Turkey 3-0 in the same group.
Belgium sits in second place with six points, while Turkey tops the bottom of the standings without any points.
