Holders advance to last four

Kapo double
The defending champions were in majestic form at the Stade de France and were never troubled by their Group A rivals. Two first-half goals by Olivier Kapo and Thierry Henry and a third by Djibril Cissé in the 71st minute put the French firmly in control. Midfield players Ludovic Giuly and Robert Pires completed the rout with goals in added time.

Team display
"All the goals we scored were the result of moves involving a great number of players," said France coach Jacques Santini. "They were not mere individual efforts." Despite the win, one low note for Santini was the loss of AS Monaco FC's Jérôme Rothen for the rest of the tournament with an ankle injury.

Three from three
The victory means France top the group with a maximum nine points and will play the runners-up of Group B in the last four on Thursday. The European champions proved too strong for the All Whites, who ended the competition with three defeats from three games, a repeat of their performance four years ago.

Bright start
Giuly, making his first appearance in this year's tournament, set the hosts on their way by setting up AJ Auxerre's Kapo for a close-range finish in the 17th minute. Three minutes later, the Monaco playmaker outsprinted defender Gerard Davis and delivered a pinpoint cross for Henry to head in at the far post. France then eased off before Cissé, who hit the woodwork in the first half, slotted in a third goal from Henry's cross. Giuly and Pires then struck late on to confirm their side's superiority.

South American joy
Colombia are also through to the last four after beating Japan 1-0 in the other Group A match on Sunday. Giovanni Hernández scored the winning goal in the 68th minute at the Stade Geoffroy-Guichard in Saint-Etienne when he pounced on a mix-up in the Japanese midfield. They will meet the winners of Group B, currently led by Cameroon.