As an established YouTuber, Ruesha Littlejohn is the most natural communicator in the Republic of Ireland squad.After the agonising loss to Wales in the European Championship playoff in December 2024, she laid out in clear terms what is hindering the women’s team from regularly qualifying for major tournaments.“We need to look at the grassroots,” Littlejohn said at the time. “Change our game, change our style. Look at the best teams, they’re all so comfortable on the ball. I think that’s the journey we’re on now and it starts with the young ones. Everyone has to get better on the ball.”Fast forward 18 months and the FAI have yet to make the essential changes below a senior squad where generational stars Katie McCabe and Denise O’Sullivan continue to excel alongside American and English-born players like Marissa Sheva and Caitlin Hayes.“Right now, with the way the game is going and the accessibility that there is, we are going to have a lot more girls playing,” said Littlejohn on Sunday morning, speaking from Ireland’s hotel in Grenoble ahead of Tuesday’s final World Cup qualifier against France.“Looking at the girls in the squad right now, you have [Abbie] Larkin, Emily Murphy and Jess Ziu. They are all technical players, so that is great. But it is just for the other young ones coming through, just making sure that they are working with the football.“Look at Spain, look at France. They are not obsessed with the gym. Yes, they look after their bodies but there is a lot about how you move and how comfortable you are with the football.“But look, Ireland is a small country,” she added, “and these other nations have a bigger pool of players. Training with the lads is always going to be better for you. So, if you are a young girl and reading this interview, make sure, you are training with the lads!”Littlejohn only started her 94th cap in the historic 3-2 victory over the Netherlands at Páirc Uí Chaoimh last Friday because O’Sullivan was suspended.Having only played 45 minutes all season for Crystal Palace, her recall showed the lack of midfield alternatives available to Ireland manager Carla Ward.But Ward and Littlejohn have an unshakeable bond, with the former signing the latter on two occasions, first as Birmingham City manager in 2021 before bringing her to Aston Villa. Ireland's Abbie Larkin celebrates with Jessica Ziu and Kyra Carusa after she scores against the Netherlands. Photograph: Ben Brady/Inpho “Honestly I find it baffling that people want to write players off because they have not played a lot of minutes,” Littlejohn countered. “I felt capable of playing more minutes but the [Palace] manager [Jo Potter] picks her strongest team and I wasn’t in the plans, so that’s that. Palace got promoted so I can’t really complain.“I am 35, that was my 94th cap for Ireland, so I don’t know why people do not expect me to come in and play 45 minutes. We can do it in our sleep now. If Séamus Coleman can do it, so can I.”Littlejohn is referring to Coleman’s five starts during last year’s run into the World Cup playoffs despite clocking only 10 minutes in his last season at Everton.“It’s no big deal,” she continued. “But people are always looking to pull players down but you got to block that out and believe in yourself.”She had not featured off the bench in the previous five qualifiers as Ward turned to Littlejohn’s podcasting partner Lucy Quinn to replace the injured O’Sullivan away to the Dutch in March. In Cork, she brought a calmness to midfield and showed the vision to pick out Abbie Larkin’s run leading to the opening goal by Kyra Carusa.“The ball dropped nicely for me and I saw Larko’s back. She is absolutely rapid and because we’ve trained together all year at Palace I know I can put a ball in her path and she is probably going to catch it. But she did well to put it around the corner first time for Kyra. It took an eternity to go over the line but we’ll take it.”O’Sullivan is expected to come straight back into the team for Littlejohn at Stade des Alpes tomorrow, but Ward has an unenviable call to make between starting Larkin or the returning Murphy.The stakes have not been this high since Ireland travelled to Hampden Park in October 2022, when Amber Barrett’s goal beat Scotland and sent them to their first World Cup. If they can overcome France, a country ranked seventh in the world, they will qualify directly for the tournament in Brazil next summer and avoid a convoluted playoff draw on June 18th.“Obviously we go into the game as underdogs but we believe in our squad. We are going to try and make it as difficult as possible for France. Hopefully we can score a goal and limit their chances. Tactically, we’ll be ready to go.”