So that’s that ... Ireland put in a hardworking performance, but are outplayed away to a much better team. They go into Sunday needing a result against the Netherlands to keep them alive in the group.
Aurélien Tchouaméni and Dembele were both superb, the former scoring a brilliant goal. Best for Ireland was Ogbene although he missed the only clear cut chance the team created.
Keep an eye on the homepage for the match report and reaction. Thanks for joining us tonight.
FT France 2 Ireland 0
A look at the Group B table after wins for France and the Netherlands ...
Ogbene: “A difficult night for us, couldn’t fault the effort but we came up against a world class team. We just came up short today and now look forward to Sunday.”
FT France 2 Ireland 0 Coman’s effort blazes narrowly over the bar and as the referee blows the final whistle, Ireland are fortunate to lose by just the two goals to a very slick French side in Paris.
Ireland worked their socks off and had a few promising moments, but any argument that France’s only real chances in the first half came from distance were quickly put to bed within about three minutes of the second half. And from then on France could’ve easily scored another few!
Thuram meets Theo Hernandez’ cross at the back post, but he heads it into the ground and wide when he really should’ve grabbed his second. Mbappe then lines up two defenders, slips between them and his curling shot looked to be going in only for a block from Duffy.
Six minutes added on in Paris, Ireland have really worked hard here but been so outplayed. Festy Ebosele is on now for Ogbene who was Ireland’s best player by a distance.
Meanwhile the Netherlands lead Greece 3-0 now, Weghorst with their third goal.
France 2 Ireland 0 (85′) France finally pick their time after a spell of keep ball, Griezmann plays the role of conductor, Coman is presented with the chance, but Collins puts his body on the line to block his shot at goal. Then Thuram gets in the way of Kounde who would’ve had a free shot at a third goal, before Duffy gets his head on a free kick but it’s easily saved.
Dembele steps past McClean, but this time unleashes a shot himself which smashes off the near post. So close to a brilliant individual goal. He’s just been replaced by Kingsley Coman, no doubt the whole Irish team will be delighted by that change. (72 mins)
Will Keane has picked up a knock and been replaced by Aaron Connolly. Inside the final 10 minutes Ireland look nowhere near scoring here.
France retain possession for a few minutes before Kounde breaks down the right wing and his cut back is cleared by Jayson Molumby. Tchouaméni then unleashes another shot from distance but this time Bazunu saves it. Molumby and Idah are replaced by Dara O’Shea and Will Keane. (67 mins)
France 2 Ireland 0 (56′) Mbappe misses two great chances, the second he was offside anyway. Ireland then pressure France in the corner and win it back, it’s crossed into Knight at the back post and comes off a French head for a corner. Shouts for a penalty then as Lucas Hernandez and Collins come together, but the referee awards France a free-kick as he spotted a push from Collins before Hernandez took him down.
What a chance, Idah is played through and he doesn’t back himself, turning back, Ireland work it out wide and the cross into the box finds Ogbene from point blank range but his header is well saved by Maignan. The subsequent corner is worked to Ogbene who cuts out and shoots left footed, narrowly wide.
France 2 Ireland 0 (48′) France go close with Mbappe claiming a penalty as he was tackled just before shooting after a clever dummy from Dembele had set him up. But the move continues, and Griezmann sets up Theo Hernandez and he pulls it back for Mbappe. He’s denied by three diving Irish bodies, but it bounces up then for Thuram to score his first senior international goal from close range.
The second half is underway with James McClean replacing Stevens who really struggled with Dembele in that first half. Early yellow card for Josh Cullen after he takes down Rabiot.
HT France 1 Ireland 0 Mbappe goes down looking for a free-kick. Ogbene counters brilliantly, taking on one player down the wing and then playing a nice pass into the midfield when confronted by two more, where Browne wins a free-kick. But that’s the end of the first half action. France lead by a goal, they’ve been by far the better team, but it took a brilliant shot from distance to break Ireland down. Stephen Kenny’s team are getting a bit of joy off going direct to Idah, countering through Ogbene, and they’ve had a lot of set pieces. But no real chances.
Four minutes have been added on at the end of the first half, we are into the first of them.
Idah wins a free-kick. Browne puts in a good pacey delivery but no Irish head can meet it. Idah is doing well in his contests with the centre backs. Seconds later France come again, Dembele plays Kounde through and his pass across goal is scrambled clear by Duffy.
Dembele once again skips past Stevens and then skins him. His cross picks out Thuram who heads well wide. (41 mins)
France 1 Ireland 0 (39′) The excellent Tchouaméni picks out Mbappe who goes too early and is well offside. He puts it past Bazunu before the offside flag goes up.
The Netherlands lead Greece 2-0 in Amsterdam. Cody Gakpo with their second goal.
A brilliant interception by Jason Knight, who then shows some lovely footwork to dribble past Dembele and win a free-kick. From the following French attack Mbappe shoots from distance but it’s easily gathered by Bazunu. France are still struggling to create any major chances aside from shots from outside of the box, as Ireland are working very hard. (34 mins)
France 1 Ireland 0 (27′) Idah does brilliantly to win a long ball with three French players around him, he flicks it to Ogbene who comes onto it at pace, but turns down a shot from outside the box and with no support turns back. Ireland then enjoy a good spell of possession but they need to take more risks to score. Marcus Thuram has replaced the injured Giroud.
Yellow card for Theo Hernandez for taking down Ogbene. Minutes later Rabiot’s shot from the edge of the box is blocked. He had way too much time there.
France 1 Ireland 0 (18′) GOAL!! Mbappe sets up Aurélien Tchouaméni for a shot from distance, and what a strike! Right footed, curling into the the right corner. France take the lead!
Antoine Griezmann sends in a brilliant free-kick, which bounces right through to Bazunu, who parries it away with bodies diving in on top of him. Then at the other end Nathan Collins wins it, Ogbene leads the counter and Collins continues his run but the Luton Town forward declines the through ball. Instead he steps out and shoots left footed but it’s blocked. A promising move, wrong decision by Ogbene.
Josh Cullen is fouled in the midfield, Ireland go short from the resultant free-kick but then chip it into the box. It’s headed across goal but then cleared by the French defence. Ireland win the second ball and work it to Ogbene who makes a good run down the left (a few minutes ago he carried well down the right wing) but his low cross is gathered by Mike Maignan.
France 0 Ireland 0 (10′) An excellent cross from deep from Alan Browne finds Idah in the box, but his touch brings him out rather than setting the Norwich striker up for a shot. Nevertheless Ireland have started well, the game being played at a good pace, they are competing all over.
Ousmane Dembélé squares up two defenders and sets up Adrien Rabiot for a shot from the edge of the box which is well gathered by Gavin Bazunu. From the next attack Theo Hernández opens up down the left wing, cuts back in and lays it on for Olivier Giroud whose goal-bound effort is well blocked by John Egan. The resultant corner causes confusion between Adam Idah and Bazunu, but Ireland eventually clear it.
France 0 Ireland 0 (1′) A smart kick-off routine by Ireland catches France off guard, a few sharp passes, and a late French challenge gives the visitors an early free-kick. Enda Stevens whips it in but France head it away. John Egan nods it back in but again France clear. Game on, a good start!
We are two minutes away from kick-off, the French fans are in form tonight. Ireland will need to start strongly ...
1,700 Irish supporters in Paris this evening. By the looks of the two starting teams, they’re expecting a miracle at the home of PSG. But you just never know. Some build-up pics here as we close in on kick-off ...
The great Kylian Mbappé must be looking forward to captaining his national team at his club’s home ground. He’s started the season averaging a goal every 44 minutes for PSG. Let’s just hope this one doesn’t get ugly.
Ken Early isn’t given Kenny’s team much hope tonight. With so many key players injured, he’s worried it could get get ugly...
[ Ken Early: Loss of key men feels like a bad punchline for Ireland and KennyOpens in new window ]
The thoughts of Stephen Kenny, talking after his team announcement ...
The Irish team is out ...
France: Maignan; Koundé, Upamecano, Lucas Hernández, Theo Hernández; Tchouaméni, Rabiot; Dembélé, Griezmann, Mbappé; Giroud.
Looks as though Browne will play right wing back. With Ogbene up top playing off Idah. That’s a strong French side, all the big names in from the start. Nine of the 11 who started the World Cup final.
And the highlights from that game, those late saves were top class ...
At the end of March, Ireland came so close to getting a draw from the group opener against France in Dublin. In a really promising performance, Mbappé was barely involved and only for some brilliant late saves by visiting goalkeeper Mike Maignan and Ireland would’ve taken a deserved point from the night’s effort.
Some Irish players – Seamus Coleman, Nathan Collins – appeared furious at the end. Maybe that anger will be the fuel that drives Ireland through the rest of this group. But whether we are angry, sad, proud or defiant, none of it will matter unless we can quit our doomed love affair with the sideways pass, and start thinking about playing some diagonal ones instead.
Check out Ken Early’s reaction piece from that game in full here
And a look back at Ireland’s results so far and the remaining fixtures in Group B ...
A quick look here at the Group B table as it stands ...
With Greece, the Netherlands and the Republic of Ireland in a three-way battle for a playoff position, here’s a bit of a breakdown of how things stand after four games ...
[ Group B state of play: Dramatic upturn in form required for Ireland’s survivalOpens in new window ]
The big (big, bad) news for Ireland is the loss of Evan Ferguson. Fresh from bagging a hat-trick against Newcastle for Brighton, hopes were high he could provide some well needed magic for the boys in green, but a knee injury has ruled him out of the international window.
Stephen Kenny gave some background to the injury, explaining it wasn’t picked up in the Newcastle game but rather something he’s been playing on ...
Check out David Gorman’s All You Need To Know Guide below ...
And Gavin Cummiskey’s preview and predicted line-ups ...
In football terms, Ireland is the proverbial dirt on French shoes. A perfect scenario for an ambush, or a dose of cold realism. The latter is more likely, simply because France “escaped” Dublin with a win last March thanks to a “spectacular” save by Mike Maignan off Nathan Collins’s bullet header in the 90th minute ...
Hello and Welcome ... While the imminent Rugby World Cup kick-off in France has dominated most of the sporting headlines this week, and even occupied the Stade de France, Ireland’s Euro 2024 qualifier tonight against the French at Parc de Princes is a huge game and certainly not one to be overshadowed by the rugby action.
With Ireland facing one of the best sides on the planet, featuring arguably the world’s best player in Kylian Mbappé, in search of crucial points as they aim to qualify for the 2024 European Championships in Germany. This is definitely a big one, and things get under way at 7.45pm Irish time.
Stephen Kenny’s team take on the World Cup finalists in Paris, five months after almost earning a draw in Dublin. This will be Ireland’s fourth game in Group B, so far they only have three points and are in need of a big result either tonight or against the Netherlands on Sunday, to keep qualification hopes alive. They will have to do so without star striker Evan Ferguson who has been ruled out with a knee injury, and while the rugby team go into this weekend as the best ranked side in the world, a draw for the football team tonight would be seen as a brilliant result.
We’ll be providing build-up and updates throughout. Keep in touch via the comments section or on Twitter (@DonoghueEamon) but for now, let’s get started!
Euro 2024 Group B qualifier: France v Republic of Ireland, Parc des Princes, Thursday, 7.45pm Irish time – Live RTÉ2
