Stephen Kenny lauds Ireland players' efforts in pushing France to brink

Stephen Kenny expressed pride in his Republic of Ireland players after succumbing to a 1-0 defeat against France in their opening Euro 2024 qualifier.

A long-range strike from Benjamin Pavard was all that separated the sides at the Aviva Stadium with the Boys in Green almost grabbing an equaliser late on but for outstanding saves from Mike Maignan.

Speaking to RTÉ Sport at full-time, manager Kenny admitted disappointment in not getting anything from the game but was clearly encouraged by how his players fared against a nation that has reached two World Cup finals in a row.

"We're disappointed to lose the game. We were playing somebody of the quality of France, who are a top team in the world and you need to create a game of few chances," said the Ireland manager.

"They didn't really have chances before they scored, even though they had sustained periods of play.

"I thought we defended very well. It's an unbelievable strike from Pavard but we're disappointed with the goal of course. But up to that point, there was no chance conceded."

We need your consent to load this comcast-player content We use comcast-player to manage extra content that can set cookies on your device and collect data about your activity. Please review their details and accept them to load the content. Manage Preferences

Kenny was enthused by how his side reacted to going behind, including the two late chances that forced saves from Maignan, the second coming from Nathan Collins' header.

"I felt we rallied strongly again and the players gave everything and pushed France all the way," he said.

"They were relieved to get out of here with a win and obviously we had some chances in the last ten minutes and we needed Gavin (Bazunu) to make two saves.

"But a