France took the lead in only the third minute as midfielder Matuidi curled home a fantastic shot from a tight angle into the far top corner. Bulgaria more than held their own in Sofia, though, as they looked to repeat the famous win over France that sent them to the 1994 World Cup, and Hugo Lloris was forced into a point-blank save to deny Georgi Kostadinov. But Didier Deschamps's side closed out the vital win, and three points at home to Belarus on Tuesday would book their ticket to Russia. Trailing the Scandinavians by three points, only a massive victory over Sweden in Amsterdam next week will save the three-time World Cup runners-up. Real Madrid star Ronaldo is now level on 15 goals for the campaign with Poland's Robert Lewandowski, a record for European World Cup qualifying.

Source: The Nation Bangkok October 07, 2017 21:11 UTC