The boulevards of Neuilly have changed little since England were last based in that Parisian suburb, preparing to play first France, then South Africa in the final stages of the 2007 World Cup. Both France and England, though, have changed significantly in the four-month interval, one embracing a more characteristically Gallic style that has carried them to the head of the RBS Six Nations Championship, the other chasing an identity that is proving elusive.

Remarkably, only 13 of the 30 players who started that semi-final at the Stade de France, which England won 14-9, remain this evening. Or perhaps it is not so remarkable, given the new broom that Marc Lièvremont has wielded since his accession as France coach, and the fresh attitude that Brian Ashton, his England counterpart, hopes to instil in his players.

These are two individuals who seek the same end, though Lièvremont, the younger man, has taken a more radical approach. It is possible to see in the former flanker echoes of Sir Clive Woodward when he became England’s head coach in 1997; Ashton is frank in his admiration for what Lièvremont is trying to do and the rugby that his charges have played during the short time they have been under his wing, but also asks: “Wouldn’t it be great if we could outplay them at their own game?”

This does not seem to be what France, who have been inspired by the electric display of their back three, expect this evening. They note the experienced heavyweights in the England pack and remember the damage wrought by Andrew Sheridan against Australia in the World Cup quarter-final in Marseilles and the accuracy of Jonny Wilkinson’s goalkicking. They expect more of the same and have been working hard on their set-pieces.

Ashton’s hopes are different and improved by a week in which he has not had to change his starting XV because of illness or injury. “We need to see signs for 80 minutes that the team is starting to move in a different direction,” he said yesterday. “They’re in the mood to put that into operation and I’ll be concerned if it doesn’t happen. We know how we want to play, what we want to do in certain areas of the field and that’s what the players have to focus on.”

In the first half of the opening Six Nations game, against Wales, Ashton believed that his players were on his wavelength before a dreadful stream of injuries took their toll. The mediocrity of the narrow win over Italy suggested that there was far more work to be done and, though England hope to be in the shakedown for honours at the end of the championship, they have looked no farther ahead than France.

There has been much discussion this week of their inability to use Lesley Vainikolo effectively, but that is immaterial if England cannot win more possession. “We haven’t had the set-piece platform England normally have, and from which we can develop our game,” Ashton said.

Four months ago, England had a plan that took them to a World Cup final. It may have been a limited plan but it gave them a foundation that they do not have at present.

Strange though it may be to say, this France team offer England a chance to find that base, because of the way in which they seek to play, because of their inexperience at half back, because they are still putting together a pack.

The news that World Cup seedings will also depend on results achieved this calendar year imposes another imperative. The IRB world rankings will determine the seedings in New Zealand in 2011 and the cut-off point is December 1; New Zealand claims that it needs three years to confirm match venues so, though the board wanted to make the draw a year later, it has acquiesced.

So England’s status as 2007 runners-up will do them no good and, should they lose to France, they will slip to No 6 in the rankings.

France: C Heymans (Toulouse); A Rougerie (Clermont Auvergne), D Marty (Perpignan), D Traille (Biarritz), V Clerc (Toulouse); F Trinh-Duc (Montpellier), M Parra (Bourgoin); L Faure (Sale Sharks), D Szarzewski (Stade Français), N Mas (Perpignan), P Papé (Stade Français), L Nallet (Castres, captain), J Bonnaire (Clermont Auvergne), T Dusautoir (Toulouse), L Picamoles (Montpellier). Replacements: W Servat (Toulouse), J-B Poux (Toulouse), J Thion (Biarritz), F Ouedraogo (Montpellier), D Yachvili (Biarritz), D Skrela (Stade Français), A Floch (Clermont Auvergne).

England: I Balshaw (Gloucester); P Sackey (London Wasps), J Noon (Newcastle Falcons), T Flood (Newcastle Falcons), L Vainikolo (Gloucester); J Wilkinson (Newcastle Falcons), R Wigglesworth (Sale Sharks); A Sheridan (Sale Sharks), M Regan (Bristol), P Vickery (London Wasps, captain), S Shaw (London Wasps), S Borthwick (Bath), J Haskell (London Wasps), M Lipman (Bath), N Easter (Harlequins). Replacements: L Mears (Bath), M Stevens (Bath), B Kay (Leicester), T Croft (Leicester), P Hodgson (London Irish), D Cipriani (London Wasps), M Tait (Newcastle Falcons).

Referee: S Walsh (New Zealand).