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Published 22:14 10 Jul 2018 BST
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France have assembled one of the most talented and exciting squads in world football, but they had to work hard for this victory.
Samuel Umtiti's goal from a corner gave them the win, and they were happy to play the entire match on the counter-attack.
For some reason, the BBC commentators said that the game would perhaps "open up" when the first goal came. The opposite happened. France retreated and held out for the win.
https://twitter.com/Caley_graphics/status/1016774509767127040
Umtiti, and particularly Raphael Varane, were excellent at the back for France. They comfortably dealt with the threat of Romelu Lukaku. The Manchester United striker played very well in the win over Brazil, but struggled to make any impact against France. Lukaku had just 22 touches of the ball. No other player who started the match touched the ball less.
In fairness to Lukaku, he was up against two top-class defenders and a defence sitting very deep. He also wasn't the only Belgian player to disappoint on the night. Kevin De Bruyne wasn't his brilliant best and Mousa Dembele struggled. Marouane Fellaini was also slow to react when Umtiti scored with a near-post header. Eden Hazard was Belgium's best player on the night, by far.
However, Lukaku's performance wasn't well received by those watching at home.
https://twitter.com/Eudee0626/status/1016776014222057472
https://twitter.com/MotheoMhala/status/1016773071594774529
https://twitter.com/pokeefe1/status/1016773454425739264
https://twitter.com/NotStanding/status/1016775349596774400
https://twitter.com/MangoLassC/status/1016776136112656385
https://twitter.com/d_dcee/status/1016776105141964803Football

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