France will be pleased with the three points despite a poor performance as they sit of the top of Group B. Ireland can leave with their heads held high, and many other teams in the group will now know of the threat they pose. Their next game will be against Greece in June while France travel to Gibraltar.
Despite only having one shot in the first half, Ireland were the better side in the opening 45 minutes. They defended well in numbers and forced mistakes from the French attackers. Ogbene and Ferguson have held the ball up with great determination for Ireland, but their build-up play has been too slow on occasion against a confident France team. Neither side managed to register a shot on target but both looked dangerous on the counter-attack. It only took the visitors five minutes to score in the second period after a mistake from Cullen. He passed the ball straight to Pavard outside the box, and the defender struck his shot in off the crossbar. Ireland pushed hard for an equaliser, but Maignan pulled off an incredible save at the death from a Collins header to secure a 1-0 win for France.
90' + 4' FULL TIME: REPUBLIC OF IRELAND 0-1 FRANCE
M. Thuram
R. Kolo Muani
90' + 3' Thuram comes on for Kolo Muani to help France see this game through.
90' + 2' The Ireland players are not happy with the referee as they think Maignan has caught the ball while out of play, but the linesman says the ball stayed on the pitch. France are now trying to run the clock down.
90' There will be a minimum of three additional minutes.
J. Egan
Yellow Card
90' Egan also receives a booking after a collision in the box during a corner.
89' WHAT A SAVE! Maignan makes a crucial save from close range to keep Ireland out! Collins connects perfectly with a header from Cullen's corner, but Maignan goes full stretch to stop the ball from hitting the top corner. Sensational.
A. Idah
Yellow Card
88' Idah now goes into the referee's book after a poor challenge in his own half.
88' Camavinga spots the Ireland defence sleeping and plays a lofted pass to Mbappe. The forward tries to lob Bazunu with a first-time effort, but misses the target.
M. Obafemi
J. Molumby
86' Obafemi comes on for Molumby as Ireland desperately look to rescue a point.
86' CHANCE! Browne tries his luck with a half-volley from outside the box, but the ball bounces just wide of the France goal! Appeals for a handball in the build-up are also waved away by the referee.
84' SAVE! Maignan makes a save low to his left to keep France ahead! McClean bursts into the box and shoots toward the near post, but the goalkeeper manages to stop his effort.
83' Ireland are now enjoying a lot more of the ball and the fans in the stadium are doing their best to spur their side on for an equaliser.
J. Koundé
B. Pavard
81' Kounde replaces Pavard to help defend the fresh legs of the Ireland attack.
A. Tchouaméni
A. Rabiot
81' Tchouameni comes on for Rabiot in midfield for France.
80' The substitutions from Ireland are helping them as the game is a lot more open now. France are sensing more danger as they prepare a few changes themselves.
A. Browne
D. O'Shea
78' O'Shea makes way for Browne as Ireland search for a goal.
J. Molumby
Yellow Card
77' Molumby is not happy with his team-mates after he is forced into a foul to stop Camavinga in a dangerous position. The referee shows him a yellow card for the foul.
M. Johnston
J. Knight
77' Johnston comes on for Knight in the Ireland attack.
J. McClean
M. Doherty
77' McClean replaces Doherty to add more pace on the left side of the pitch.
75' SAVE! Bazunu makes another good save to keep Ireland in this game. Rabiot is given time and space to shoot from 25 yards out, and his attempt is low and hard. The goalkeeper does well to get down quickly and push the ball away from his goal.
73' Mbappe and Hernandez misread each other as Coleman intercepts a pass from the France captain. Ireland continue to defend well but they need to start attacking more.
71' France are still attacking patiently but are committing more bodies forward to try and score a second goal to secure the win.
69' SAVE! Bazunu pulls off a good diving save to stop Diaby from scoring. The winger cuts onto his left foot and curls the ball toward goal from the right side of the box, but the goalkeeper is equal to it.
67' Knight almost finds himself through on goal after a brilliant pass from Coleman, but Maignan gets to the ball before the Irish attacker.
A. Idah
E. Ferguson
65' Idah comes on for Ferguson as Ireland push for an equaliser.
M. Diaby
O. Giroud
65' Diaby replaces Giroud as France's first change of the day.
M. Doherty
Yellow Card
65' Doherty is shown a yellow card for a poor challenge outside the penalty area.
63' Hernandez sends a deep cross toward Griezmann, but the header from the attacker goes straight to the opposition. The goal has not made a difference to the quality of France's attacking play.
61' Konate draws an important foul against Ferguson as the striker almost creates a scoring opportunity after taking the ball down on his chest.
59' The ball gets stuck under the feet of Mbappe as he tries to drive through the middle of the Ireland defence. The hosts need to give Ogbene and Ferguson more help if they want to get an equaliser.
57' France are now a lot more comfortable in possession as they move the ball around slowly to try and kill the atmosphere in the stadium. Ireland are not giving up as they hold a slightly higher line.
55' Griezmann shoots from a free-kick just outside the box, but he fails to beat the Ireland wall with his attempt.
54' France have only lost three of their last 29 away qualifying matches for major tournaments (World Cup/Euros), winning 18 and drawing eight. They’ve won six of their last seven on the road (D1) since a 2-0 defeat to Turkey in 2016.
52' Ireland try to reply quickly as Cullen sends in a corner from the right side, but France deal with the cross and look to build an attack.
B. Pavard
Goal
50' WHAT A GOAL!! 1-0 FRANCE!! PAVARD!! Pavard scores a stunning goal to give France the lead early in this second half! Cullen gives the ball away on the edge of the box to Pavard and the defender strikes the ball with power, leaving Bazunu no chance in goal.
48' The second period is starting in a very similar way to how the first half was played. France's passing is very poor in the attacking third while Ogbene is causing all sorts of problems for Hernandez on the right wing.
46' Ferguson gets the second half underway for Ireland!
The longer the game stays goalless, the happier Ireland will be. France will not want to drop points tonight and will risk more going forward as the minutes tick by. Ireland seem happy enough to sit deep and look for a counter-attack, but they will need to give Ferguson and Ogbene more help in the attack.
Despite only having one shot in the first half, Ireland were the better side in the opening 45 minutes. They defended well in numbers and forced mistakes from the French attackers. Ogbene and Ferguson have held the ball up with great determination for Ireland, but their build-up play has been too slow on occasion against a confident France team. Neither side managed to register a shot on target but both looked dangerous on the counter-attack.
45' HALF-TIME: REPUBLIC OF IRELAND 0-0 FRANCE
44' Both sides are attacking with more intent now as they look to try and take a lead into the half-time break. France are still far too sloppy in the final third, especially Rabiot.
42' Ogbene shows great determination to keep the ball in play and win a corner off Rabiot. Cullen comes over the take the set-piece, but it leads to nothing for Ireland.
40' Cullen sends a dangerous cross into the box from a free-kick, but the ball goes through everyone before Kolo Muani drives away with it.
38' Pavard sends in a cross from the right wing and Griezmann tries to find the back of the net from a difficult angle, but his header goes past the front post.
36' The away side are trying to play more direct now as they look to find Giroud and Rabiot with long balls into the box. Ireland are still defending with a lot of bodies in the area, helping them deal with the lofted passes.
34' France are trying to attack down the wider areas before either sending in a cross or cutting inside and shooting, but Ireland are finding it very easy to defend like this.
32' Hernandez tries his luck from distance but drags his effort into the path of Griezmann, who deflects the ball behind for a goal kick. France are feeling very frustrated in the final third.
30' Ireland have started their European Championship qualifying campaign with a win in each of their last three campaigns, beating Armenia in 2010, Georgia in 2014 and Gibraltar in 2019. This is the first time they’ve started a campaign at home since 1998, winning 2-0 against Croatia.
28' Despite not having a shot so far themselves, Ireland are limiting France at the other end too. This match is very much in the balance due to the threat of the home side on the break.
26' Doherty drives past Kolo Muani and then Pavard before winning a corner as his cross is turned behind by Konate. Ireland try to work a short corner but fail to get a cross into the box.
24' Griezmann takes an out-swinging corner for France and Giroud wins the initial header. The ball then pinballs around the six-yard box before Bazunu jumps onto it.
B. Pavard
Yellow Card
22' Pavard receives the first yellow card of the game after fouling Knight to stop a dangerous counter from Ireland.
20' Molumby puts in a sliding challenge to tackle Rabiot and stop a counter-attack from France. He then tells the crowd to make more noise to help Ireland in this important opening game.
18' Cullen whips the ball into the middle of the crowded penalty area, but Giroud wins the header to clear the danger away for France.
17' Ogbene runs in behind Hernandez and draws a foul in a good position for Ireland on the right side of the pitch.
15' Ireland are holding their ground defensively and forcing mistakes from the French players. The hosts are however struggling to play out from the back now against the high line of France.
13' Kolo Muani beats Doherty on the right wing before sending in a dangerous cross toward Mbappe, but Molumby heads the ball away.
11' France are starting to find their feet in this game and control possession. They are still looking to play at their own tempo and not rush for an opener.
9' CHANCE! Kolo Muani takes the ball around Bazunu before flicking it back to Giroud in the middle of the box, but the striker is smothered by Irish defenders as he looks to take a shot at goal!
7' France are being very patient with their build-up play. They are not taking many risks going forward, making it challenging to break Ireland down.
5' Ireland are passing the ball around well and looking to play forward whenever they can. Ferguson is also doing a good job to hold the ball up for his side.
3' The atmosphere inside the stadium is incredible. The home fans are cheering on every pass, tackle, and dribble. France are doing well to keep their composure to begin this match.
1' France get the game underway at the Aviva Stadium!
The players are making their way out of the tunnel and onto the pitch!
France have won their last four qualifying matches (World Cup/EUROs) by an aggregate score of 16-0. They've not won five successive qualifiers without conceding since doing so between November 1981 and December 1984.
Kenny makes six changes to the Ireland side that beat Latvia as Bazunu, Egan, Coleman, Cullen, Knight, and Ogbene all start. Deschamps makes three changes to his starting 11 as Pavard, Camavinga, and Giroud replace Kounde, Tchouameni, and Coman.
SUBS: Brice Samba, Alphonse Areola, Axel Disasi, Jules Kounde, Youssouf Fofana, Aurelien Tchouameni, Marcus Thuram, Jordan Vertout, Jean-Clair Todibo, Khephren Thuram, Moussa Diaby, Kingsley Coman.
France (4-2-3-1): Mike Maignan; Benjamin Pavard, Ibrahima Konate, Dayot Upamecano, Theo Hernandez; Eduardo Camavinga, Adrien Rabiot; Randal Kolo Muani, Antoine Griezmann, Kylian Mbappe; Olivier Giroud.
SUBS: Caoimhin Kelleher, Mark Travers, Andrew Omobamidele, Alan Browne, Michael Obafemi, Adam Idah, James McClean, Jeff Hendrick, Mark Sykes, Jamie McGrath, William Smallbone, Mikey Johnstone.
Republic of Ireland (3-4-3): Gavin Bazunu; Nathan Collins, John Egan, Dara O’Shea; Seamus Coleman, Jayson Molumby, Josh Cullen, Matt Doherty; Jason Knight, Evan Ferguson, Chiedozie Ogbene.
France flexed their muscles in their opening game as they thrashed the Netherlands 4-0. New captain Kylian Mbappe scored twice and assisted Antoine Griezmann on their way to victory. The French team have had to deal with negative press after Didier Deschamps’ choice to give the armband to his star forward, but the players seem to be focused on bouncing back from their World Cup final heartbreak.
This is Ireland’s first match of the group and they come into it in good form after beating Latvia 3-2 with a heavily rotated side. Stephen Kenny’s team have won back-to-back internationals for the first time since October 2021 and 18-year-old Evan Ferguson is leading the headlines after scoring on his first start last time out. With the Netherlands and Greece also in this group, the Boys in Green will want a positive result in front of their home fans today.
Hello and welcome to the live commentary of the European Championship qualifier between the Republic of Ireland and France.
Commentary