DOUBTS STILL REMAIN

France may have won their opening match against Romania but the performance was far from convincing. HT looks at the problems the hosts need to iron out as they prepare for tougher battles ahead:

DODGY DEFENCE

In the absence of

Raphael Varane and Jeremy Mathieu, through injury, and Mamadou Sakho, due to a provisional doping ban, fears over France’s ability to win the competition with an understrength backline look justified as it struggled to cope with Romania. Laurent Koscielny and Adil Rami (in pic) looked vulnerable at the heart of the defence and coach Didier Deschamps will need to sort out the mess as soon as possible.

LACK OF MATCHPLAY

Being hosts is like a double edged sword. While it ensures direct entry, it has its drawbacks as well. And the most important thing is the lack of match practice.

As rest of the European countries battled it out in the qualifiers, France had to make do with friendlies. And the effects of that was evident in their opening match as Les Bleus players found it difficult to gel due to lack of competitive matches.

GIROUD UNDER SCANNER

Deschamps decision to leave out Karim Benzema and pick Olivier

Giroud (in pic) as the main attacker hasn’t gone down well with the fans and experts. While the Arsenal forward scored France’s opener against Romania, doubts still remain of his ability to land those killer blows when it matters and against tougher opponents. He was also guilty of missing some chances and will have to improve his strike rate if he has to win over his detractors.

ALL EYES ON PAYET

At the start of the season, Dimitri Payet would have never imagined of making it to the Euro squad, leave alone making it to the starting XI. But after outshining illustrious compatriots like Paul Pogba and Antoine Griezmann in the opener, a lot more will be expected of him in France’s quest for glory.