France head coach Fabien Galthié swung the axe on star players Mathieu Jalibert and Damien Penaud as part of his attempt to relaunch his squad's tilt for the 2025 Six Nations title in Italy on Sunday.

Backs Damian Penaud and Matthieu Jalibert were axed from France's team to play Italy on Sunday in the Six Nations, paying the price for poor performances against England. The decision by coach Fabien Galthié on Friday came after Les Tricolores made sloppy handling errors and missed tackles in a 26-25 loss at Twickenham two weeks ago.

Fabien Galthie has swung the selection axe and made drastic changes for the clash against Italy.

Is Italy vs France on TV? Kick-off time, team news, channel and how to watch Six Nations clash - Everything you need to know ahead of the round three fixture

Stadio Olimpico Date: Sunday, 23 February Kick-off: 15:00 GMTCoverage: Text commentary and highlights on BBC Sport website and app; watch live on ITV1; watch highlights on BBC Two from 1800 GMT.France team newsHead coach Fabien Galthie has made sweeping changes to his 23-man squad following his side's 26-25 defeat by England last time out.

France coach Fabien Galthie has swung the selection axe after his side’s Six Nations defeat to England with wing Damian Penaud and fly half Matthieu Jalibert omitted for the encounter with Italy. The pair are among those to pay the price for an error-ridden performance at Twickenham that saw France’s hopes of a grand slam go up in smoke.

The decision came after Les Tricolores made sloppy handling errors and missed tackles in a 26-25 loss at Twickenham two weeks ago as Galthie also opts for a Springboks-style 7-1 split on the bench