FEATURE | Three things we learned as France finish World Cup preparations with Northern Ireland victory | OneFootball

France finished up their preparations for the 2026 FIFA World Cup with a comfortable 3-1 win over Northern Ireland courtesy of a hat-trick from Michael Olise. 

A preview of the starting line-up for Senegal?

With so many attacking options at Didier Deschamps’ disposal but so few places up for grabs, there’s been some curiosity over who would make the cut. 

Notwithstanding any major setbacks, you’d expect that the lineup Deschamps chose for this match will be the same team that will take to the field against Senegal on the 16th of June. Kylian Mbappé was always going to start as the number nine in Deschamps 4-2-3-1, but who would accompany him and where was far less clear. 

Ousmane Dembélé, like Mbappé, was a nailed-on pick, but tonight he played in the hole rather than in his more expected position on the wings. On the flanks, Désiré Doué was provided the starting berth on the left, while Michael Olise kept his position on the right from Thursday’s 2-1 defeat to the Ivory Coast. 

For a player like Rayan Cherki, who made a strong case for himself in the previous match, perhaps the struggles the side showed in breaking Northern Ireland down in the first half will continue his cause into next week. 

Saliba injury fears allayed… or ignored?

William Saliba’s injury concerns have been the big fear for French fans and Arsenal supporters alike, although for different reasons. Saliba has become a defensive lynchpin for both sides, and it was no surprise that France looked far more ropey than expected against the Ivory Coast on Thursday without him present. 

Saliba is reportedly nursing a back injury, and there was a worry over how this would impact his presence at the tournament. His absence would represent a significant blow, although it appears as if Deschamps and his medical team aren’t too worried, with the Arsenal man playing the first half before being substituted at the break. 

For France supporters, this is fantastic news… For Arsenal supporters, it is far less so. The fear will linger that the national team are kicking the can down the road, and it will be the club that pays the price for his involvement. 

Deschamps still searching for magic formula despite dominant scoreline

The pursuit of balance has been a defining feature of Deschamps 14 year reign as France’s head coach. However, coming into the World Cup, there is a real sense that the manager is struggling to find the magic formula to make his team of superstars click. France look both top-heavy with the amount of talent they have in attack, but ill-coordinated. 

Despite a dominant scoreline, the attack was far from purring across the full ninety minutes as Deschamps tried to build his side around Mbappé’s goalscoring talents. But with Mbappé misfiring, Les Bleus were instead forced to rely far more on individual moments of brilliance rather than flowing teamwork… which is not always a terrible thing to rely on when you have someone like Michael Olise who can conjure something out of nothing. 

However, the problem is worsened by the fact that there is a knock-on effect on the defence, which has looked very fragile across these last two friendlies. Counters have looked devastating for Deschamps’ side, and one wonders whether against a more potent side, Les Bleus could be in for some big problems. 

GFFN | Nick Hartland