Montella promises Turkiye victory against Italy
Vincenzo Montella has vowed he will lead Turkiye to victory against Italy in the UEFA Nations League after its narrow 1-0 defeat to France on matchday one.
Kylian Mbappe's 54th-minute strike was enough to earn Zinedine Zidane a victory in his first game in charge at Turka Arac Muayene Kocaeli Stadyumu.
Ugurcan Cakir was shown a late red card for a handball outside of the box, but Montella was thrilled with the way his team played against France's star-studded squad.
His side comes up against an Italy team which began its second stint under Roberto Mancini with a 2-0 defeat at home against Belgium, with Mika Godts and Dodi Lukebakio scoring in either half to hand Mark van Bommel a winning debut.
It is the first meeting between the two nations since a 0-0 draw in an international friendly in June 2024, but Italy has a good record in this fixture.
The Azzurri have never lost to Turkiye in their previous 14 matches against them, winning 10 of those.
However, Montella believes his team's performance against France is a solid foundation to build on, and he was confident of getting the better of Italy on Tuesday (AEST).
"You all played very well and showed your fighting spirit," Montella told his squad.
"We conceded a goal due to a momentary lapse in concentration, but we could have won this match.
"Now we will immediately gather our energy and focus on the Italy match. This time we will win, as long as we play with the same discipline and passion."
Turkiye is third in Group A1 after the opening round of fixtures, with clashes against Belgium and Italy to come before the end of the international break.
