Slick France leaving England feeling blue

England 0-2 France
Gabriel Obertan and Moussa Sissoko scored first-half goals as France beat England in Nottingham to leave beaten coach Stuart Pearce with much to ponder ahead of this summer's UEFA European Under-21 Championship.

N'Gog denied
In confident mood following Friday's 5-0 friendly victory in Norway, England created the evening's first opportunity, winger Adam Johnson hitting a left-footed dipping half-volley just over the bar from Michael Mancienne's lay-off. That was as good as it got for the hosts before the interval, however, as France took control. After Liverpool FC striker David N'Gog was twice denied by England No1 Joe Hart, Erick Mombaerts' youngsters got a deserved breakthrough on 27 minutes, FC Lorient winger Gabriel Obertan reacting first on the edge of the box to fire a crisp low shot into the bottom right-hand corner.

Lethal counter
Within eight minutes the visitors had doubled their lead, Toulouse FC midfielder Moussa Sissoko beating the offside trap to race beyond the England back line and on to Younousse Sankharé's perfect through ball, before taking a touch and lifting a sublime chip over Hart and into the back of the net.

Wasteful finishing
The second half followed a familiar pattern, with England labouring to get back into the game and France looking dangerous on the break. Indeed, mere seconds after the home side had gone close via Tom Huddlestone's glancing header, striker N'Gog should have made it three only to blaze his shot wastefully over the bar.

Late pressure
Despite a late period of England pressure, the French rearguard held firm to win the first meeting between the sides since the second leg of a play-off on 15 November 2005, a game France edged 2-1 to qualify for the following year's U21 tournament – Les Bleuets' last appearance in the finals.