Didier
Deschamps’ men
scored
the
opening
goal
for
the
first
time
in
six
matches,
Griezmann
delivering
a
stunning
left-footed
finish
to
become
the
fourth
player
to
score
40
goals
for
France.
Finland
were
the
most
recent
defeat
team
to
triumph
on
French
soil
but
rarely
troubled
in
Lyon,
Griezmann
adding
a
second
after
the
break
to
draw
him
level
with
Michel
Platini
in
third
on
the
all-time
scoring
list.
The
hosts
sit
top
of
Group
D
and
remain
unbeaten
despite
their
underwhelming
return
after
a
poor
Euro
2020,
while
Markku
Kanerva’s
men
have
won
just
two
of
their
past
12
games
across
all
competitions.
Urho
Nissila
brought
the
first
save
from
Hugo
Lloris,
his
looping
strike
forcing
the
Tottenham
goalkeeper
to
tip
over
before
Karim
Benzema
called
Lukas
Hradecky
into
action
with
a
left-footed
effort.
However,
Hradecky
was
no
match
four
minutes
later
as
Griezmann
beautifully
curled
into
the
bottom-right
corner
after
an
offload
from
Benzema,
who
was
appearing
in
Lyon
for
the
first
time
since
2011
after
returning
to
his
former
club
with
Real
Madrid.
Paul
Pogba
came
close
to
adding
a
second,
though
he
could
only
volley
wide
on
the
stretch
as
he
sliced
his
right-footed
strike
from
outside
the
area.
Griezmann
doubled
his
and
France’s
tally
after
the
break,
rolling
a
delicate
shot
through
the
legs
of
Hradecky
after
being
teed
up
by
Leo
Dubois.
Atletico
Madrid’s
new
loanee
should
have
completed
his
hat-trick,
Benzema
again
acting
as
the
creator,
but
he
could
only
poke
over
before
acrobatically
volleying
wide
with
his
next
attempt.
Benzema
could
have
had
a
goal
of
his
own
in
the
closing
stages,
but
Hradecky
got
down
well
to
parry
away
after
the
forward
had
struck
a
left-footed
volley.
What
does
it
mean?
Deschamps
ends
winless
run
and
furthers
Group
D
lead
France
had
stuttered
after
their
poor
showing
at
Euro
2020,
drawing
their
five
games
in
a
row
for
the
first
time
in
their
history
before
the
visit
of
Finland.
However,
Tuesday’s
win
ensured
their
unbeaten
run
remains
intact
and
extended
their
advantage
at
the
top
of
Group
D
to
a
seven-point
gap
over
second-place
Ukraine.
Finland
have
played
a
game
less
than
their
closest
rivals
Ukraine
but
also
sit
on
five
points
in
third
place,
despite
only
picking
up
their
first
win
against
Kazakhstan
last
weekend.
Perfect
Pogba
Griezmann
will
take
the
plaudits
but
Pogba
appeared
a
class
above
at
Groupama
Stadium
as
he
enjoyed
a
game-high
142
touches.
No
player
completed
more
passes
than
the
Manchester
United
midfielder
(113),
who
also
recorded
the
most
opposition-half
passes
(73).
In
a
complete
midfield
outing,
Pogba
managed
17
recoveries
of
the
ball,
10
more
than
any
other
player
on
the
pitch.
Poor
Pukki
Teemu
Pukki
needs
just
three
more
goals
to
become
Finland’s
all-time
top
scorer
but
fired
a
blank
in
a
timid
performance,
with
a
second-half
caution
not
helping
his
cause.
Only
the
two
goalkeepers,
Lloris
and
Hradecky
(both
28),
had
fewer
touches
than
Pukki’s
29
and
he
won
fewer
than
half
of
the
nine
duels
he
competed
for.
To
make
matters
worse,
the
Norwich
City
forward
completed
the
fewest
passes
(14)
of
any
outfield
player
in
Lyon
to
play
90
minutes
as
he
endured
a
torrid
time
up
top.
What’s
next?
France
face
Belgium
in
the
Nations
League
semi-final
in
October
before
hosting
Kazakhstan
the
following
month.
Finland
next
play
Ukraine
at
Helsinki
Olympic
Stadium.
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