PARIS - France head to Ireland on Saturday in a probable Six Nations title decider with a lot of focus on Fabien Galthie's choice in midfield.
The head coach is set to keep Yoram Moefana and Pierre-Louis Barassi as his centres for a fourth straight match during this year's tournament.
The pair performed inconsistently during the wins over Wales and Italy which sandwiched the away defeat by England, decided by a last-gasp touchdown from Elliot Daly.
"Moefana and Barassi, there were big mistakes against England, for their final try," former France head coach and winger Philippe Saint-Andre told AFP on Wednesday.
"They didn't manage to close off the inside runner," the 57-year-old TV pundit added.
Two weeks after the Twickenham defeat the duo were influential in attack as Les Bleus kept their hopes of just a second title under Galthie alive by scoring 11 times against Italy.
One negative from the Rome rout was their combination off the ball, which was at fault for two of the Azzurri's tries.
France's usual defensive leader, experienced outside centre Gael Fickou, missed the three opening games with injury.
Despite returning to training the 30-year-old is unlikely to feature in Dublin as Galthie keeps faith with Moefana and Barassi.
"If you say that with Moefana-Barassi you'll score four tries, you have to be ready to concede two," Saint-Andre said.
"Their experience and the amount of times they'll play together, in training and in matches, will help them evolve and grow, to become something better."