Les Blues still the talk of the town

SHADES of blue: the Azzurri may be the opposition tomorrow night at Lansdowne Road but the talk yesterday concerned the visit of Les Bleus to the same venue on September 7.

The returning musketeers - Zidane, Makelele and Thuram - have raised the bar, and the stakes, for what was always going to be one of the biggest games in Group 4 of the World Cup qualifiers.

Republic of Ireland midfielder Graham Kavanagh thinks it’s no surprise Zidane has returned but doesn’t automatically assume that it will make Ireland’s task more formidable.