adminMARSEILLE. — Didier Deschamps praised the persistence of his French side after late goals from Antoine Griezmann and Dimitri Payet steered the Euro 2016 hosts to a 2-0 win over Albania on Wednesday night.
But Deschamps admitted there were still areas in which France could improve despite starting the tournament with back-to-back victories.
Substitute Griezmann broke stubborn Albanian resistance with a 90th-minute header in Marseille before Payet scored deep into injury time as France became the first team to secure their place in the last 16.
“This is becoming a bit of a habit, I’d prefer us to break the deadlock a bit earlier,” Deschamps said.
“But we finished the game very well, we can improve on things, but what we did (on Wednesday) was good.
“It was tricky for everyone, Albania played with heart and spirit, they tried to score, they countered very quickly, but in the second half we were more aggressive.”
France began their bid for a third European Championship title — following triumphs in 1984 and 2000 — with a nervous 2-1 win over Romania last Friday.
But despite creating a host of scoring chances against Balkan minnows Albania in a stirring second half on Wednesday, the game looked set for a surprise draw.
Until the closing stages it had been a frustrating night for France.
With Manchester United’s Anthony Martial and Bayern Munich’s Kingsley Coman starting in place of Griezmann and Paul Pogba, France struggled to break down a well-drilled Albanian side. — AFP.
Online Reporter