France Vs Italy: Italy not ready to challenge for Six Nations title before Lille match

Italy head coach Gonzalo Quesada said his side are not yet ready to challenge for overall Six Nations victory ahead of the france vs italy match in Lille on Sunday, Feb. 22, kick-off 3. 10 p. m. GMT (4. 10 p. m. local).

Quesada urges focus on performance rather than the title

Quesada said Italy are concentrating on what they can improve, citing the words "compete" and "consistency" when assessing his squad's prospects before the 3. 10 p. m. GMT kick-off. He added that talk of the championship is for France, England, Ireland and Scotland, and described praise from Rassie Erasmus and Fabien Galthie as a compliment.

Recent form and results that shape expectations

Italy opened the tournament with an 18-15 win over Scotland — their first opening weekend win since 2013 — and followed that with a 20-13 defeat by Ireland. They have won four and drawn one of their last 12 Six Nations matches and beat Australia in November. Historically, Italy's best Six Nations finish is fourth in 2007 and 2013; they have never won more than two matches in a single Six Nations, have finished bottom 18 times since joining in 2000, and failed to record a win in 12 editions.

France Vs Italy kickoff and officials

The Lille fixture is scheduled for Sunday, Feb. 22, 3. 10 p. m. GMT (4. 10 p. m. local). Assistant referees are Luke Pearce (RFU) and Eoghan Cross (IRFU), with Olly Hodges (IRFU) as the television match official. The game will be televised on ITV in the UK, with radio commentary on Radio 5Live.

France make one change to the pack, fresh second row named

France, chasing a Grand Slam after wins over Ireland and Wales and currently the only side capable of winning the slam this year, have made a second-row change from their 54-12 win over Wales. Toulouse locks Thibaud Flament and Emmanuel Meafou replace Charles Ollivon and Mickael Guillard; Flament and Meafou featured off the bench at the Principality Stadium, while Ollivon and Guillard are named among the replacements for Sunday's 15: 10 GMT kick-off. Thibaud Flament made his France debut in 2021, and Fabien Brau-Boirie, 20, who made his France debut last week, is set to retain a place in the centres.

Italy selection: Capuozzo returns, pack continuity and captaincy

Ange Capuozzo, France-born, returns at full-back for Italy after missing the first two matches with a fractured finger. Capuozzo replaces Lorenzo Pani, who misses out on the match-day 23 entirely. Italy pick the same pack that featured in Dublin last Saturday, with Michele Lamaro captaining from blind-side flanker. Regulars remain absent, including Ignacio Brex, who is unavailable for family reasons.

Team sheets and bench details

France's starting XV is Ramos; Attissogbe, Gailleton, Brau-Boirie, Beille-Biarrey, Jalibert; Dupont (capt), Jelonch, Jegou, Cros, Meafou, Flament, Aldegheri, Marchand, Gros. France replacements include Barassi, Serin, Nouchi, Guillard, Ollivon, Colombe, Neti and Mauvaka. On the bench for France, Peato Mauvaka, Georges-Henri Colombe and Pierre-Louis Barassi come in for Maxime Lamothe, Regis Montagne and Noah Nene.

Italy's starting XV is numbered: 15 Ange Capuozzo, 14 Louis Lynagh, 13 Tommaso Menoncello, 12 Leonardo Marin, 11 Monty Ioane, 10 Paolo Garbisi, 9 Alessandro Fusco, 1 Danilo Fischetti, 2 Giacomo Nicotera, 3 Simone Ferrari, 4 Niccolo Cannone, 5 Andrea Zambonin, 6 Michele Lamaro, 7 Manuel Zuliani, 8 Lorenzo Cannone. Italy replacements are 16 Pablo Dimcheff, 17 Mirco Spagnolo, 18 Giosue Zilocchi, 19 Federico Ruzza, 20 Riccardo Favretto, 21 David Odiase, 22 Alessandro Garbisi and 23 Paolo Odogwu.

Scrum battle, set piece strengths and statistical reads

Italy dominated the Scottish and Irish packs earlier in the tournament and are viewed as a formidable force in the set piece. Danilo Fischetti has been one of the form props, making 15 carries this year for 28 post-contact metres — more than any other prop in those metrics. An Opta model gives France a 92. 2% chance of winning and predicts a 41-18 scoreline for the clash in Lille.

Italy faced France in Lille two years ago in a 13-13 draw when Paolo Garbisi missed a late penalty to win the Test, and France thrashed Italy 73-24 in Rome last year. Flament missed France's opening victory against Ireland because it clashed with his wife's fertility treatment.

The match in Lille on Sunday, Feb. 22, 3. 10 p. m. GMT (4. 10 p. m. local) will determine whether France move closer to a Grand Slam and gives Italy a chance to build on an opening-weekend victory and challenge perceptions before they return from Lille.