Preview: Can energy and endeavour halt Mbappe magic?
Off the back of losing the World Cup final on penalties, and with the team slightly in transition following the retirement of captain Hugo Lloris, instrumental centre-half Raphael Varane, and star striker Karim Benzema, it was intriguing to see how Didier Deschamps' side would approach the start of their Euro 2024 campaign.
It all began at the Stade de France in Paris on Friday night as they took on fellow heavyweights and the group’s top seed; unfortunately from an Ireland perspective, it was business as usual from Les Blues, who swatted the Dutch – a team that caught the eye at the recent World Cup – aside in a 4-0 mauling.
The first two minutes of the contest summed it up, as the Dutch were allowed to knock the ball around in their own half, while France sat patiently embedded in the midfield area waiting for an opportunity to pounce, duly obliging early in the contest.
Antoine Griezmann’s opening goal in the second minute showed how lethal this France attack can be, before adding a set-piece second in the eighth minute through Dayot Upamecano, while Kylian Mbappe sealed the victory with only 21 minutes on the clock.
It was four in the end, and remarkably, France only enjoyed 42 per cent possession throughout, an approach that has served Deschamps’ unit well in recent years.
For this reason, Stephen Kenny will know exactly how to set up his side against France, and there will be no surprising formation changes for the Dublin game with perhaps just a touch of squad rotation three days on from the Netherlands game.
But as Kenny admitted in the pre-match press conference, many other teams also have known how to set up, but few can garner the required result.
Ireland will be thankful that France do not consistently play a high