Ibanez will face familiar foes

"England will be highly motivated," said Ibanez, who plays his club rugby with English champions Wasps.

"But I think that this time their motivation is not against France. They are furious with themselves.

"It will make them even more dangerous but we are not going to stand by and pay the price for their defeat."

Ibanez is one of three players - along with Olivier Magne and Thomas Castaignede - in the France side who play their club rugby in England, while Dimitri Yachvili also spent a season with Gloucester.

After witnessing the reaction of Josh Lewsey, Matt Dawson, Joe Worsley, Lawrence Dallaglio, Simon Shaw and Tom Voyce after England's defeat at Murrayfield, Ibanez is no doubt about the visitors' motivation.

Losing to England would be seen as a failure Raphael Ibanez

"It's true they looked particularly down in the three or four days that followed that setback," Ibanez added.

"They experienced the same thing as us after we lost to the Scots at the start of February.

"England have a lot of faults but they have one quality - their winning mentality."

Ibanez knows that better than most, having been on the losing side six times in his previous nine meetings with "les rosbifs", including the World Cup semi-final in 2003.

But with the hosts intent on establishing a home fortress at the Stade de France ahead of next year's World Cup, the Tricolores have their own incentives for victory on Sunday.

"Losing to England would be seen as a failure," Ibanez added. "But this match is also a way of rediscovering confidence for both teams ahead of the next six or seven months.

"There is a lot at stake and we know the challenge that is awaiting us is enormous. But winning this match means we could win the title, which is very exciting."