Lisa Fallon: Ireland should relish date with explosive France

Ireland and France will display different forms of pragmatism in their approach to tonight's Euro 2024 qualifier, according to Lisa Fallon, who adds that the game is an important stepping stone in the Irish team's development.

Fallon, who is a high performance technical director with FIFA, watched five of France's seven games at the Qatar World Cup. Observations that further reinforced her view that France are an "exceptional team".

Didier Deschamps' side made light work on Holland on Friday evening, dispelling any notion of a post-World Cup hangover. The Irish warmed up for what will be their toughest game in qualifying with a 3-2 win over Latvia two days previous.

On RTÉ Radio 1's Morning Ireland, Fallon spoke about the task facing Ireland.

"This is ultimately the test for this Irish team in this group, and it's a really tough group," she said.

"France are an exceptional team. They are a team that plays in different ways; they are a very pragmatic team and can adjust their game to play in different ways by negating the strengths and exposing the weaknesses of the teams they play.

"The most eye-catching for me is how explosive and fast they are when they counter-attack. France are quite comfortable to allow other teams to have the ball and then to counter-attack. This is what we saw from them during the World Cup and they did exactly the same against the Netherlands the other night.

"I think three of the four goals were score on France turning over possession with that explosive speed and pace. They got really ruthless players in the final third who can finish. We can't underestimate the quality that they have or the pragmatic approach that they will take. They are not a team that are in the doldrums after the losing the World