How an Albanian taxi driver evoked an age of innocence

In Uefa-speak, today is MD-1, that is to say, eve of match but also, in this case, eve of tournament.

The 24 squads are all in situ now, including Ireland who flew out from Dublin yesterday to take up residence at the Trianon Palace Hotel here in Versailles.

In such opulent surroundings, they’ll be able to sample a little of what you might call that Sun King feeling but, unlike Le Roi, they’ll be made to earn their stint in the lap of luxury by having to roll up their sleeves each day at the nearby Stade de Montbauron.