Warren Gatland is facing up to a significant No 8 injury headache for what is the biggest game of his second spell as Wales coach against Italy in Rome. Gatland's Test losing run extended to 13 matches when his Welsh players were hammered 43-0 by France in their Six Nations opener in Paris on Friday night. Significantly, in addition to shipping seven tries at the Stade de France, Wales also suffered injuries.

No 8 Aaron Wainwright left the field in the first half with blood pouring from a facial wound, and it spoke volumes of the severity of the problem that he did not return. MailSport understands Wainwright had a scan on Saturday to determine the exact nature of the injury, and the Wales camp will now await the results. But there are serious concerns in Gatland's staff that the back-row forward has fractured his cheekbone. If that is confirmed, Wainwright would miss the rest of the Championship.

Furthermore, the other No 8 in the Welsh squad, Taulupe Faletau, continues to battle a knee problem – one which ruled him out of the France game. Faletau didn't take part in the Wales warm-up in Paris, even though other non-playing members of the 23 for France did. It raised further concerns over the 34-year-old's fitness, even if Wales are still hopeful the Cardiff man will be fit for Italy. If both Wainwright and Faletau are deemed unable to play at the Stadio Olimpico, James Botham would likely step in, as he did when moving from the flank to the base of the scrum in Paris when Wainwright went off.

Wales lost 43-0 to France in Paris in the opening game of this year's Six Nations on Friday. As well as losing the match, Wales lost No 8 Aaron Wainwright to an injury during the first half. Such a scenario would be a significant blow for Wales in what is a must-win game. Centre Owen Watkin is also poised to miss the rest of the Six Nations and spend a long period on the sidelines after suffering a serious knee injury against France.

Wales, who flew from Paris to Nice on Saturday for their pre-Italy training camp, are expected to confirm the exact nature of Wainwright's and Watkin's injuries in the coming days once scan results have been received at their latest Cote d'Azur base. It is likely that Gatland will have to call up fresh faces. Gloucester's Max Llewellyn, who was a shock omission from Wales' initial squad, is the obvious midfield replacement for Watkin.

Italy will be a campaign-defining game for Wales, and it is also not an exaggeration to say the result will likely decide if Gatland will continue as head coach beyond it. Lose in Rome and, in all likelihood, Wales would go a second straight Six Nations without a win. Such a scenario would make Gatland's position close to untenable. Wales are desperate to snap their losing streak against Italy, who were beaten 31-19 by Scotland in their 2025 opener in Edinburgh on Saturday. That is why Gatland will be hoping for good news on Wainwright and Faletau.

'Next week becomes pretty important for us,' said Gatland after the French defeat. 'We can't hide away from that fact. We need to get the monkey off our back at the moment. We need to make sure we're smart in terms of the way we play to get that win next week in Rome.'. Wales boss Warren Gatland now faces significant pressure to deliver a win over Italy next week. Italy also lost on the opening weekend as they fell to a 31-19 defeat at the hands of Scotland.

After a winless 2024, Wales were hoping the New Year would bring a change of direction. But the mood in the Welsh game darkened further after the French game. The result was only one point short of equalling the country's record Six Nations defeat. It was also the first time Wales had failed to score at all since 2007. Gatland believes the Nice camp will help his team prepare for Italy away from the pressures of their homeland. But he and his players arrived on the Cote d'Azur on Saturday to grey skies and cold temperatures, although the forecast is scheduled to improve this week.

Wales will have to follow the weather's planned upward curve if they are to beat Italy. The Azzurri were beaten in Edinburgh but were well in the game at 19-19 before Scotland pulled away in the final quarter. France barely got out of third gear against Wales. But Les Bleus were dealt a serious blow to their title bid when fly-half Romain Ntamack was sent off for a dangerous tackle on Ben Thomas late on.

Ntamack's reckless hit means he is set to face a ban in the region of two to three matches, which would rule him out of Saturday's meeting with England and possibly future matches too. 'He's the most disappointed out of all of us,' France captain Antoine Dupont said of Ntamack. 'It happens in games, but it's not like him to do something like that which could be costly. We have to advance, but certainly we will be without him in the next days. We'll support him as best as we can.'.