France are through into the World Cup quarterfinals after a 2-0 win over Nigeria’s Super Eagles in Brasília on Monday.
The African Champions loss of concentration in the final 15 minutes allowed France to take control and net twice to advance into the next round.
Rather than being lured into Didier Deschamps’ trap, the African champions retained possession well and their pleasing interchanges in the final third ensured goalkeeper Hugo Lloris had to stay alert.
It momentarily seemed as if the Nigerians had taken advantage of France in the 19th minute, though the offside flag cancelled out Emmanuel Emenike’s close-range finish on Ahmed Musa’s excellent cross.
It was a narrow escape for Les Bleus, who were surprisingly lethargic.
France didn’t create their first chance until midway through the first half, when they surged down the right through Mathieu Valbuena.
Nigeria’s defence was caught skewed out of position, though they were fortunate to have experienced Goalkeeper Vincent Enyeama on hand to keep out Paul Pogba’s sweet volley from the edge of the penalty area.
Gradually, France started to play a little more proactively, applying sustained pressure on the Nigerian defence for the first time.
However, Stephen Keshi’s side held firm and looked to take advantage of the shift in momentum by hitting their opponents on the counter.
John Obi Mikel had the team’s final attempt before halftime, though Lloris palmed his long-range effort away from danger.
The tempo of the game dropped markedly after the players came out for the second half, which played into the hands of the weaker Nigerian side.
Unfortunately, they suffered a big blow just short of the hour mark, when a nasty challenge from French midfielder, Blaise Matuidi, ensured Ogenyi Onazi’s World Cup ended on a stretcher.
The Eagles continued to control the game and weren’t given a real scare until France broke through on goal for the first time with 20 minutes remaining.
A neat one-two between Karim Benzema and Antoine Griezmann left the striker one-on-one with Enyeama, though the keeper got down to make a crucial save before Victor Moses hooked the loose ball off the goal line.
Benzema went close again within moments, though Enyeama tipped his close-range header over.
It suddenly felt as if France had woken up.
They had.
Some poor goalkeeping from Enyeama saw him flap at a Mathieu Valbuena corner, leaving Pogba to head the ball into an empty net at the far post, with just over 10 minutes left on the clock.
It could have been 2-0 immediately, though Enyeama made an excellent save on a one-on-one with Griezmann to keep Nigeria in the game.
However, the stop only served to delay the inevitable as an own goal from Joseph Yobo on Valbuena’s low cross confirmed the defeat in stoppage time.
France will play either Germany or Algeria in the quarterfinals, while the Super Eagles are heading home.
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