Slick France make flying start

France turned on the style in front of a large and vociferous crowd in Aberdeen to record a 3-1 victory which ended Scotland’s hopes of qualifying but kept their own very much alive.

Early opener
Semi-finalists at the 2006 UEFA European Under-21 Championship in Portugal, France wasted little time in stamping their class on the match by opening the scoring inside three minutes as Jimmy Briand turned and shot beyond David Marshall. The Scots hit a post through Craig Beattie before falling 2-0 down on 15 minutes as Florent Sinama Pongolle struck with a fine shot.

Adam consolation
The introduction of Ross Wallace after half-time saw Scotland increase their threat, particularly from set-pieces, yet France always had plenty in reserve and scored again through Yoann Gourcuff in the 83rd minute. Charlie Adam converted a penalty for Archie Knox's side with seven minutes remaining, a goal which will do little to dent French confidence as they prepare to welcome Slovenia on Tuesday needing a point to qualify for the play-offs.