Six Nations 2026: Will Ireland coach Andy Farrell change Italy’s squad?

When Andy Farrell took over as Ireland coach after the 2019 World Cup, former defensive specialist Joe Schmidt faced calls for a radical overhaul of a team that had clearly fallen from its great heights.

In 2018, Ireland won the Six Nations Grand Slam title and beat New Zealand in Dublin as part of an Autumn Clean Sweep.

By the time Farrell took over, England had blown a Manu Tuilagi-shaped hole in their best-laid World Cup plans before reaching the tournament and were shocked by Japan in the pool stages before the All Blacks got their revenge in the quarter-finals.

Then, after the head coach had been on hold for a year, there was a feeling that Farrell’s association with the previous ticket was making his tenure begin to wind down.

However, by his first start in February 2020, Farrell had resisted any temptation to impose a major break with Schmidt’s system, and his biggest picks revolved around replacing retiring veterans Rob Kearney and Rory Best.

While making Kaylan Doris’ international debut was a nod to the future, naming 34-year-old Johnny Sexton as his captain was a clear signal of a focus on the here and now.

As Ireland floundered through two third-place campaigns in a Six Nations tournament disrupted by the Covid-19 pandemic, Farrell remained steadfast in his approach to evolution rather than revolution, and his faith was rewarded with a historic win in New Zealand in 2022 and a Six Nations Grand Slam the following year.

In the wake of Thursday’s humbling defeat to France in Paris to kick off the 2026 Six Nations, Farrell has faced the strongest calls since those early days of his tenure to significantly overhaul the squad.

With Italy facing off in Dublin on Saturday afternoon, will the manager hold on or fluctuate?