France left it late to snatch a 1-0 win over Belgium in the Euro 2024 round of 16 on Monday, but they were prepared to take their time against a more conservative Belgian side than usual, manager Didier Deschamps said.

It took until the 85th minute before France finally made the breakthrough with a shot from substitute Randal Kolo Muani which was deflected by defender Jan Vertonghen for an own goal.

“We made a lot of progress and I think that the opponent was obviously a little bit more cautious even though on paper Belgium is quite an offensive team,” Deschamps said.

“They are quite an attacking team, they maybe held back a little bit more than we’re used to seeing. On our side as well, even though we did everything we could to try and attack, to try and score, to try and create chances.

“We managed to create more chances than Belgium did, but we were also maybe on the back foot. We were intelligent, we were playing the waiting game and we weren’t going to fall into the trap of giving them the space that they were looking for.”

The France coach was happy with his side’s performance, and how they dominated possession, but wanted to see more attempts on goal from a team which has yet to score from open play at the Euros, with a penalty and two own goals.

“We have the ability to have a hand or have a better hand over our matches and to keep ball possession. This is something that I enjoyed this evening,” said Deschamps.

“Obviously you can’t win games just through possession, but it’s better having the possession of the ball and attacking and making the team defend. But the number of shots we had, that’s probably the only thing that I want to work on.

“I think that on the pitch there’s high intensity, and even if today the goal is enough for us to get to the quarter finals, we’ve always got the capacity and the capability to score more.”

France came into the tournament as one of the favourites to win the Euros and, despite the fact that they have failed to overly impress so far, Deschamps does not want anyone taking the fact they are still involved for granted.

“I’m immensely proud of what we’ve been able to do and we’re into the quarter finals and that’s probably what counts,” he said.

“Even though people expect us to get to the quarter finals, let’s not play this down, let’s savour the moment.

“What I’ve said to my staff here is that we wanted to savour the moment, we should appreciate every moment. Nothing comes at the blink of an eye or in a click of
your fingers and we’re in the quarter finals.”

Mask factor

Kylian Mbappe has had more masks than goals at the European Championship.

The France captain is struggling with his peripheral vision in the masks that were fitted to protect his broken nose from their opening game at Euro 2024.

He wore a third different mask on Monday in the 1-0 win against Belgium. The striker failed to hit the target in five attempts on goal against Belgium.

He has only one goal in the tournament.

“You’ve got the sweat aspect and we know sweat can get in his eyes. He’s getting used to it, but it can affect his vision,” Deschamps said. “Everything in front of him is fine, but there’s a delay with his peripheral vision.”

Mbappe broke his nose in an aerial collision with Austria’s Kevin Danso, and has described the mask-wearing experience as “an absolute horror.”

His only score so far was a penalty against Poland. “I saw people but I had the feeling it was not me that was playing,” he said after that game.

Mbappe was initially fitted with a custom-made mask that was designed in the colours of the French flag. But Uefa rules state protective equipment has to be a single colour, and he switched to an all-black version against Poland.

He changed it again for the knockout game against Belgium with a version that appeared to be more custom-cut to the contours of his face. It also had more ventilation than his previous masks.

But it didn’t seem to make a lot of difference, with Mbappe’s shooting often wide of the mark.

It could be a problem for Real Madrid if Mbappe still requires a mask at the start of next season after he completed a move to the Spanish giant last month.

Before that, Mbappe and France have a quarter final against Cristiano Ronaldo’s Portugal on Friday.

Delighted Griezmann

Antoine Griezmann’s return to the France team proved unconvincing but he was still delighted with their progress to the quarter finals.

Griezmann was dropped for the last group game against Poland but recalled in an unusual role on Monday.

He was one of three attackers for the French.

“It was a new system for us, you have to get used to it,” said Griezmann. “The coach came to my room. He told me where he wanted me to play. I replied: ‘Let’s go, coach, I’m here for you, I’m here for the team’.”

He enjoyed the unfamiliar role.

Griezmann said the foundation of the victory was laid by a strong performance from the back four. “It was a great game defensively for the team. We are very happy to be in quarters.”