LILLE, 9 June (H.S.): France bounced back from last week's defeat to Ivory Coast with a 3-1 victory over Northern Ireland in a World Cup warm-up match on Monday, thanks to a brilliant hat-trick from Michael Olise. Despite the convincing win, France's defensive vulnerabilities were once again exposed.

Olise once again underlined his importance to the French side and further established himself as one of the team's most influential attacking players ahead of the FIFA World Cup.

Head coach Didier Deschamps fielded a lineup largely resembling the side expected to start France's opening World Cup match. Olise operated behind Kylian Mbappé, Ousmane Dembélé and Désiré Doué in attack, while William Saliba and Dayot Upamecano partnered in central defence.

France struggled to find its rhythm in the early stages and found it difficult to break down Northern Ireland's disciplined defensive setup. Clear-cut chances were limited during the opening exchanges.

The breakthrough arrived two minutes before halftime. Following a swift attack down the left flank by Désiré Doué, the ball reached Dembélé, whose effort took a deflection and fell kindly to Olise. The midfielder made no mistake from close range, giving France a 1-0 lead.

Olise doubled the advantage four minutes into the second half. Northern Ireland failed to clear the danger inside the penalty area, allowing him to strike a superb half-volley into the net to make it 2-0.

Although France appeared to be in control, its defence once again came under pressure. Northern Ireland capitalised when Shea Charles delivered an excellent cross from the right, which Patrick Kelly converted to reduce the deficit to 2-1.

Any hopes of a comeback were extinguished by Olise in the 75th minute. The French playmaker completed his hat-trick with a superb curling effort that found the far corner, sealing a 3-1 victory for the hosts.

France will now begin its World Cup campaign against Senegal in Group I on June 16. It will then face Iraq and Norway in its remaining group-stage fixtures.

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Hindusthan Samachar / Jun Sarkar