France-Ireland (36-14): a try, brilliant inspirations… why Matthieu Jalibert succeeded in his return to Blue

Some talents are so great that they cannot stand discretion and never stay in the shadows for long. After a sober start to the match, Matthieu Jalibert electrified the Stade de France with a frank and precise run. Well served by Antoine Dupont, he plants three Irish defenders to score the second French try.

We play the 22nd minute and, until then, the Bordeaux opener, starting in the absence of Romain Ntamack, had not taken any risks. But as the minutes passed, he settled into an armchair for which he was made. Without sparkle, but with wisdom. The Bordeaux opener is reaching maturity and his romance with the Blues can finally take a nice turn. The easy victory against Ireland (36-14), this Thursday evening at the opening of the Six Nations Tournament, is perhaps the prelude.

An artist who seeks to shine

As if to quietly find their feet, Dupont and Jalibert, whose last association dated back to February 8, 2025 in England, first put themselves at the service of the collective, distributing to the right and the left with a speed which quickly overtook the Irish. For the recital, you will have to wait. Perhaps for fear of doing too much, but above all to respect the instructions of coach Fabien Galthié, the Bordeaux maestro has not displayed the palette that has delighted Chabans-Delmas since the start of the season. This is also the new Jalibert. An artist who does not seek to shine, but to make people shine.

Physically at the top, he puts his inspiration and his vision of the game at the service of the collective. Above all, he no longer fades away in defense, a sector in which he has long disappointed the Blues staff. The fruit of a long work in his club, where he revised his placement and his movements to improve his efficiency. His 10 successful tackles, some virulent, prove it: he is no longer a weak point on the blue line.

Called up for the first time when he was only 19 years old, will Jalibert finally succeed in establishing himself with the XV of France? Fabien Galthié has often repeated that they both maintained a “privileged relationship” whose benefits for the player have been difficult to see until now. The coach has often been stingy with compliments towards him. Before the meeting, we still felt that he measured each word, taking care not to emphasize it more than Ntamack or Ramos.

“Matthieu loves this attacking game in which I find myself a lot”

“Matthieu has been one of our three openers for seven years,” he said during the press conference on Wednesday. He has a lot of experience with us, he has had some very good matches and successes. I expect from the hinge what I have seen over the past ten days: complicity, concentration and the ability to combine the forces around them. »

But in 2026, everything can change. Galthié knows everything that the UBB 10 can bring to the Blues. And, as a way of dubbing him, Antoine Dupont swept aside doubts about their association on January 26 during the presentation of the Tournament in Edinburgh.

“Matthieu loves this attacking game in which I find myself a lot, so we have a lot of similarities,” explained the captain of the Blues. This year, he shows everyone that he is a great player. It always went really well, every time I played with him I always enjoyed playing with him. He has a lot of appetite for attacking play, like me, he likes to throw the ball back and take risks, which is the case for me too. I think we have the same rugby mentality. It will be quite easy to find each other. »

The two players most applauded during the team presentation did not offer fireworks but the appetizer for the rest of the Tournament is full of promise.