A well-documented aspect of the decline of Barcelona was the so-called ‘Messi-dependencia’, where the team eventually struggled to do anything without him. Finances played a part there but the perceived importance of Messi dominated so much of the discourse that a disproportional amount of resource went into ensuring he was present at all times.

France captain Antoine Dupont has confirmed on social media that he ruptured cruciate ligaments in his knee during the win over Ireland on Saturday. The scrum half was forced off in the first-half after Tadhg Beirne fell awkwardly on his leg at a ruck.

Tadhg Beirne and Andrew Porter have avoided disciplinary action despite France head coach Fabien Galthié launching a withering attack on “reprehensible” Irish behaviour after Saturday’s match.