France vs Northern Ireland Prediction: Big win expected for World Cup hopefuls

One of the favourites for World Cup success, France, finalise their World Cup preperations with a friendly against Northern Ireland in Lille on Monday (9.10pm local, 8.10pm BST).

Below you can find my France vs Northern Ireland predictions for this Monday night encounter. 

Team News

Didier Deschamps will leave his job after the World Cup, and this is the final chance for him to nail down his starting XI ahead of the tournament. He saw his side lose 2-1 to Ivory Coast in their last friendly, as Ousmane Dembele was rested, so expect him to join an attack featuring Kylian Mbappe and potentially Michael Olise, with Rayan Cherki trying to nail down that number 10 role. 

Lucas Digne and Theo Hernandez are battling it out for the starting berth at left-back, with the Aston Villa man the slight favourite to get the nod against Senegal. Mike Maignan is expected to continue in goal.

Michael O’Neill is unlikely to make too many tweaks to his side, but he will be without Blackburn's suspended defender Tom Atcheson, so Trai Hume should start, with Ethan Galbraith likely to be given a start in midfield. 

Football Odds

France vs Northern Ireland Odds

France are priced at 1/7 to win this game, while Northern Ireland are 12/1 to cause a shock. A draw is 6/1, over 2.5 goals is 4/9 and BTTS is 11/8.

Mbappe is the favourite to score first at 7/4. 

France to win both halves @ EVS

I know France lost to Ivory Coast last time out but I’m expecting a better showing in their final friendly. This one takes place at home, at Lille’s Stade Pierre-Mauroy, so the conditions don’t need to be taken into consideration either. We are going to see, in my mind, France ramp things up as they prepare for their opener against Senegal. 

Northern Ireland are decent, but they aren’t on the same level as France. A 1-0 win over Guinea and a 1-1 draw with Wales shows the level they are playing at, and France should enjoy a confidence-boosting win. Backing them to win both halves takes the price up to EVS. 

Price Boost - France 3+ goals, 7+ corners and 8+ shots on target @ 9/2

Betfred have a fair few Price Boosts on the cards for this fixture, and one has caught my eye. As I’ve just explained I believe France will take full control of this match. I think given their attacking quality, with Dembele, Mbappe, Cherki and more all set to play some part, they should be able to rack up plenty of goals. 

I’ve not included a specific goalscorer in this selection as it is still just a friendly, but this requires 3+ goals from the hosts. Add to that 7+ corners and 8+ shots on target, I think complete French dominance at 9/2 is worth a small punt.