France have beaten New Zealand 3-0 to finish top of their group at the Summer Olympics, and send the OlyWhites out of the tournament.
Buoyed by a partisan home crowd in Marseille, France had 32 shots, compared to New Zealand’s eight goal attempts, in a match that went end-to-end.
France coach Thierry Henry was reluctant to get carried away with his team’s performance.
“We only qualified for the quarter-final, nothing more,” he told FIFA.com.
“We need to stay focused because that was one stage of the competition and now a second one starts.
“Our guys were in a good rhythm — and it’s not easy because some of them didn’t play in the first few games.
“We try to have everyone involved.”
France will play Argentina in the last eight.
New Zealand head coach Darren Bazeley said it was important to remember his side were not the All Whites, even though some of the squad were full internationals, but an age group team.
The young players would benefit from the experience of playing strong opposition under tournament conditions.
“It’s a real insight into the levels, the challenges for them to try to get to,” he said.
“Their next challenge is to try to make the All Whites squad.”
READ MORE: Sparkling French win ends OlyWhites’ hopes of reaching Games quarter-finals >>>>
In the other Group A fixture, the United States beat Guinea 3-0 to go through to the quarter-finals, in which they’ll meet Morocco.
The other quarter-finals will see Japan play Spain, and Egypt take on Paraguay.
The match was broadcast live in New Zealand by Sky Sport who have produced a 12′ 30″ highlights package.
Main photo: Jean-Philippe Mateta lines up his shot to score the first goal.
Watch the highlights
Results
Games played on Wednesday July 31, 2024 (NZT)
New Zealand 0
France 3 (Jean-Philippe Mateta 19′, Desire Doue 71′, Arnaud Kalimuendo 74′)
United States 3 (Djordie Mihailovic 14′, Kevin Parades 31′, 75′)
Guinea 0
Final standings
This story was first published on July 31, 2024.
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