Jacques Brunel believes France can exploit “weaknesses” in Ireland’s game in Sunday’s Six Nations match in Dublin.

The France coach has named an unchanged 23, keeping faith with the squad from the 27-10 victory over Scotland in Paris.

Brunel resisted the temptation to recall the fly-half Camille Lopez, with the Toulouse duo Antoine Dupont and Romain Ntamack continuing in the half-back pairing.

England exploited France’s muddled back-three set-up with clinical tactical kicking to rout France 44-8 at Twickenham last month – but Brunel insists his side can cause problems for Joe Schmidt’s team.

“What England offered us was of high quality; we have worked since then but it’s hard to predict everything,” Brunel said. “The Irish are going to put pressure on us with their kicking game whether it’s Conor Murray or Johnny Sexton. We will try to master this characteristic of the Irish game.

“We watched their tournament matches, we saw their ability to hold the ball and inflict long sequences on their opponents. We know what to expect but they were well beaten by the English. There are weaknesses and we will try to pressure those. They beat New Zealand in November and are still the No 2 team in the world. But everything is moving quickly – look at Wales, who have almost become invincible.

“Ireland continue to be certain about their game and remain very successful; after losing to England they were able to bounce back against Italy. It’s very difficult to take them on, because their game is very well structured and programmed. Their group of players is difficult to counter. We must be effective and not lose energy, and we must make smart decisions.”

Dupont has fast emerged as France’s premier scrum-half in this tournament and Brunel admits France are already relying on the 22-year-old. “I hope our pack will put our pivots in the best shape to develop good conditions,” Brunel said. “Antoine Dupont is young, he is growing. He must be manager and hub of the game. He regulates the speed of the team. His trump card is the level of his physical condition – we can count on him.”