Monday 4 February 2019 22:44, UK
Chris Ashton has warned England to be ready to face an "angry France" at Twickenham as Eddie Jones' side look to record back-to-back wins in the Six Nations.
France began the campaign with a disappointing defeat to Wales in which they surrendered a 16-0 half-time lead to lose 24-19 at the Stade de France.
England, meanwhile, started the championship with an impressive 32-20 win over defending champions Ireland - their first win in Dublin since 2013.
Ashton has warned his team-mates against overconfidence and is expecting a strong response from France after their defeat in Paris.
"We've got a big Test against France - an angry France," said the former Toulon wing. "Obviously they'll be up for it a little bit more now than they would have been had they won.
"We'll be at home, which is in our favour, but it will be an angry French team, desperate to make up for the last 20 minutes of that game against Wales.
"A lot of their game is based on emotion, but they've got a lot of good players in there too. They've got to get a win and make up for last week.
"It's really unusual for them to lose like that at home, so I'm sure there will be repercussions from that which will go beyond emotion!
"If we know anything about the French, it's that they love a reaction. Their backs are against the wall and we expect nothing less.
"They'll definitely be putting everything into winning next week - they have to really, in the situation they are in and after losing at home."
Ashton believes England have rediscovered the physicality which helped them claim successive Six Nations championships under Jones in 2016 and 2017.
"Physicality is a big part of Ireland's game and we wanted to make it a big part of our game," he said. "It's probably something we lacked in last year's Six Nations. We lost a bit of that edge.
"We knew we had to be as physical as we ever have been to have an impact here and we were definitely. You could see that.
"We didn't have as much ball as we would have liked but in defence we knocked them back."
