Chasing its first Grand Slam since 2004 and with two home games to come, France is confident of going a step further with a home victory over Italy in the Six Nations championship while England is wary of another embarrassing slip-up against last place Scotland at Murrayfield.
Despite picking up 14 injuries in their three victories so far, the French have decided not to rest many of their stars for Sunday's game at the Stade de France, where the Italians have never beaten them.
Although burly center Mathieu Bastareaud is fit again after a calf muscle injury, he can only make the bench with coach Marc Lievremont starting David Marty alongside Yannick Jauzion. Marc Andreu starts for the first time on the wing in the only other change from the side that came away from Wales with a 26-20 victory.
"There are very few changes," Lievremont said. "We thought about rotating the forwards but we favored a form of continuity."
A victory over the Italians will make it four out of four in the championship with the French the only team able to do the Slam.
After that comes another home game against England which is going through a sticky spell as it rebuilds under team manager Martin Johnson.
England flyhalf Jonny Wilkinson has been the focus of much criticism this season but insists the team has learned lessons from a 15-9 defeat on its last visit to Murrayfield two years ago.
Wilkinson became test rugby's leading scorer in that match but was dropped afterward for only the second time in his England career.
"The most painful lessons are often the most powerful and for me that is definitely the case," Wilkinson said ahead of Saturday's game.
"The game a couple of years ago was a massive learning curve and it taught us that you need to go out there to play. You can't expect to just build a game solely from what you have planned on paper.
"We tried that against Scotland with the conditions and the weather and they did a great job of smothering us."
Other than an often crippling injury list, that inability to improvise beyond training ground routines has arguably been England's biggest problem under Johnson.
Ball has slowed down and England, which has two points to make up on the French, has been unable to unpick opposition defenses.
But the last trip to Murrayfield showed that was a problem before Johnson arrived, even just five months after England reached the World Cup final.
"We didn't push the situation hard enough to earn the right to win that game," Wilkinson said. "We played a game that was stifled and we ended up losing the game and quite rightly so.
"I have learned it is all very well to know it on paper but I have got to put it into practice on the field."
An England victory over the Scots could set up a thrilling finish to the title race while defending champion Ireland hopes to stay in contention by beating Wales in Dublin on Saturday.
The Irish are level with England on four points while the Welsh have only two and are effectively out of title contention.
Coach Declan Kidney is sticking with the same starting lineup that beat England 20-16 at Twickenham. Fullback Rob Kearney also returns from injury and replaces Andrew Trimble on the bench while the inspirational Brian O'Driscoll makes his 100th appearance and his 63rd as captain.
Among three changes in the pack, Wales captain Ryan Jones is sidelined with a calf muscle injury and has been replaced by Gareth Delve in the back row. Martyn Williams will lead the side.
