Donnarumma's error and the penalty scandal: Mancini reveals the behind-the-scenes of the night France were beaten

The Italy national team sent a strong message to their critics after securing a thrilling 3-1 victory over France, in an encounter that carried much technical and psychological significance and brought back memories of the Azzurri's past glories against Les Bleus on Italian soil. Amid the joy of victory, the frustration over a missed penalty, and an early mistake that almost turned the tie around, coach Roberto Mancini emerged with comments that reflected his delight at his players' performance, though he did not hide his displeasure at some of the details witnessed during the match.

Roberto Mancini was delighted with Italy's victory over France, insisting his players delivered an outstanding performance and showed a clear desire to win and atone for past failures.

Speaking after the match, Mancini said: "It was a wonderful performance. The players delivered an outstanding match, and I am very happy for them. This win was extremely important for the fans who came to the stadium."

Important as the win was, the Italian coach warned that plenty of work remains. His players, he said, are desperate to restore the national team's standing and compete for titles again after three straight failures to qualify for the World Cup.

"We still have a lot of work ahead of us," he explained. "The road is long, but the players are determined to come back strongly. Little by little, we will achieve a good goal. I liked everything today, even though we conceded an early goal, and the match could have ended in a crushing defeat."

Mancini dwelt on the early mistake by goalkeeper Gianluigi Donnarumma, who gifted Olympique Ollise the goal that handed France an early advantage and nearly piled pressure on the hosts from the opening minutes.

His players reacted well, though. The Azzurri coach praised the way they shrugged off the shock and seized control of the match rather than crumbling into confusion.

"It was an error, and unfortunately such things happen in football," he said, "but we kept our composure and returned to playing the way we know how, and that is the most important thing."

With a daunting trip to Belgium in Brussels to come in the group's final round, Mancini urged his players to keep working and not get carried away. "There are many things to think about," he said. "This win does not mean much on its own, and now we have to go to Belgium and secure the victory."

Victory came with a sting. A controversial moment flared over Italy's first penalty, which Sebastiano Esposito missed, angering the coaching staff and reopening the debate over who should be on spot-kick duty.

The Azzurri won the penalty in the 60th minute with the score at 1-1, Malo Gusto bringing down Cambiaghi to hand the hosts a golden chance to go ahead.

Pio Esposito was meant to take it. Then came the twist: his brother Sebastiano stepped up instead and dragged the ball wide, threatening to waste a precious opportunity at a delicate stage of the match.

Mancini could not hide his annoyance, reacting furiously the moment the penalty went begging, while Gabriele Oriali and Leonardo Bonucci rushed to explain that Sebastiano was not the designated taker. A few minutes later, the player left the pitch amid attempts to explain to the coach what had happened.

Pio Esposito tried to clear things up afterwards, admitting his brother has a better penalty record but was not the man assigned to take the kick against France.

"My brother has scored more penalties than me, but he should not have taken it," Pio said after the match. "We were both on the list of penalty takers. Seba is the player who has scored the most penalties in the entire team, and any player is liable to miss them."

Mancini was far blunter at the press conference, making no effort to hide his displeasure. Pio was the one responsible for the kick, he insisted, and it would not happen again.

"Pio Esposito should have taken the penalty," the Italian coach said, "and next time the Esposito brothers will not make the same mistake again."

The win carried far more than three points and a boost in the group standings. It was historic, ending a jinx that had haunted Italy against France on home soil for more than six decades.

Their last victory over Les Bleus on Italian soil came on 5 May 1962, a 2-1 triumph in Florence.