Olise scores stunning hat-trick as France head to World Cup with win over Northern Ireland

A celebratory mood filled the stadium in Lille as the home supporters honoured Didier Deschamps, the manager who led France to World Cup glory in 2018, ahead of his anticipated exit following this summer's tournament. The French head coach selected a formidable starting eleven for his team's last match before they depart for North America.

As expected, France controlled the ball and Kylian Mbappé was denied by Pierce Charles in a one-on-one situation after 15 minutes. However, Northern Ireland nearly caught them on the counterattack moments later when Patrick Kelly fired wide of the far post after being set up by Isaac Price.

That proved to be a rare opportunity for the visitors in the first half. Midway through the period, Aurélien Tchouaméni hammered a shot against the post. The rebound fell to Désiré Doué, who squared it to Mbappé for a simple tap-in, but the flag was raised for offside.

Deschamps appeared more agitated than usual during the first-half drinks break, possibly with the shocking 2-1 loss to Ivory Coast on Thursday still lingering in his thoughts.

His demeanour would have lifted two minutes before the interval as France finally breached Northern Ireland's defence. Ousmane Dembélé's shot took a deflection and fell perfectly for Olise to slot home from close range.

Jamie Donley then believed he had bundled the ball in for an equaliser during first-half stoppage time, but the referee judged that Ruairi McConville had pushed Theo Hernández in the lead-up.

Jules Koundé picked up a knock late in the first half and was substituted by Malo Gusto at half time, potentially causing Deschamps an injury worry just eight days before France's World Cup opener against Senegal.

Northern Ireland had largely kept Les Bleus at arm's length before half time, but they fell two behind just four minutes into the second half. Olise rifled the ball home after it broke loose inside the penalty area.

France then started to find their rhythm, with Mbappé and Maxence Lacroix both shooting over the crossbar in quick succession. However, they were pulled back when Shea Charles overpowered Dayot Upamecano and squared the ball for Kelly to tap in his first senior international goal, just Northern Ireland's second ever against Les Bleus.

Mbappé sent another attempt off target as France started to appear nervous once more. However, Olise settled any anxiety with a sublime curling strike into the far corner from the edge of the penalty area, completing his hat-trick with his seventh senior international goal.

This win extends Les Bleus' unbeaten run against Northern Ireland to seven matches, with five wins and two draws. They now focus on their pursuit of a third World Cup title, while Northern Ireland are not back in action until September when they start their UEFA Nations League campaign.