The Stade de France will be jam-packed on Sunday (4 p.m.) for Les Bleus’ first game in the Six Nations Tournament against Italy. The gauges linked to the Covid are now lifted but there will still be one person missing on the edge of the lawn, and not the least: Fabien Galthié. The coach of the XV of France announced Friday to have been contaminated. But he assured that he supervised the training sessions remotely and will give his last recommendations by telephone on Sunday, before, after and at half-time.
Despite this last minute glitch, the Blues seem more than ever ready to end 12 years without having won the Six Nations. In particular thanks to the return of their stars, Antoine Dupont and Romain Ntamack. The French are in a very good momentum, like their victory two months ago against the All Blacks (40-25). And good news, thirteen of the fifteen New Zealand scorers find their bearings against Italy.
Their first opponent in the competition is a priori within their reach: Italy, eternal wooden spoon of the tournament, which is chasing after its first success in the competition since 2015.