Italy captain and Juventus defender Fabio Cannavaro has slammed France over the manner of their victory over the Republic of Ireland.

The football world has been dominated by controversy from last night's play-off in Paris, which saw Thierry Henry handle to set up the winner.

"I am very disappointed for Giovanni Trapattoni," he told Juve Channel.

"It's particularly galling that the French have always criticised us for our football affairs, but I think they're in no position to lecture us on fair play now.

"It is difficult to contain yourself when you are on the field, but at the very least they could've had the decency to not celebrate quite so much.

"France were fortunate in that they came up against a team of great sporting culture like Ireland. Otherwise the match would've and probably should've been suspended."