France beat Northern Ireland 3-1 as Olise nets hat-trick

France concluded its World Cup preparations with a 3-1 victory over Northern Ireland in a friendly match in Lille on Monday, propelled by a hat-trick from Bayern Munich winger Michael Olise. The match served as the final home game for manager Didier Deschamps, who will step down after the tournament following 14 years in charge.

Olise opened the scoring just before halftime in the 43rd minute, reacting quickest to a blocked shot from Ousmane Dembélé. He doubled the lead shortly after the restart in the 49th minute, firing home from close range after Northern Ireland failed to clear a cross. The visitors, fielding a young starting lineup with an average age of 22.6, pulled a goal back in the 64th minute when Barnsley forward Patrick Kelly, making only his second international start, finished from a Shea Charles cross. Olise sealed his hat-trick and the result in the 75th minute with a superb curling effort from the edge of the box.

France dominated possession and created numerous chances, with Kylian Mbappé, Désiré Doué, and Dembélé joining Olise in a formidable attack. Mbappé, however, was unable to add to his 56 international goals and remains one short of Olivier Giroud's...