Northern Ireland captain Trai Hume praised an “outstanding” performance from his side despite falling to a 3-1 friendly defeat against France in Lille.

A young Northern Ireland squad, which included eight players aged 22 or under in the starting line-up, were ultimately undone by a hat-trick from Bayern Munich attacker Michael Olise.

Former Coleraine midfielder Patrick Kelly had a night to remember, scoring his first senior international goal after being set up by the impressive Shea Charles – his effort briefly pulled the score back to 2-1 before Olise completed a treble 10 minutes later.

Northern Ireland were facing one of the toughest tasks possible against a star-studded French squad which included Kylian Mbappe, Ousmane Dembele and William Saliba.

placeholder image — Trai Hume makes a challenge on Aurelien Tchouameni. (Photo by FRANCK FIFE / AFP via Getty Images)

France will now travel to the World Cup amongst the hotly-tipped favourites for glory and had 72% possession against Northern Ireland alongside registering 27 shots – five were on target.

"We worked so hard and were so honest,” said Hume on BBC Sport NI. “We defended so well for parts of the game but I think when it comes down to it, it’s about looking after the ball when we get it.

"It feels like we’re defending for 85 or 90 minutes when you should be managing the ball a little better and you can manage the legs, but I thought the boys were outstanding.

"We did our analysis on them, we knew we could get them in transition, and that’s what we did.

"Even in the first half we created a chance with PK at the start and if you score that it could be a different game, but they’re a great side and it’s tough.”