Deschamps: France can do better

France coach Didier Deschamps still wants more from his players despite their fine start to the World Cup.

Les Tricolores outclassed Honduras 3-0 and put five past Switzerland before enjoying the luxury of resting some of their key players in a 0-0 draw with Ecuador that cemented their place as group leaders going into the knockout stages.

"I'm pretty happy with their performance [against Ecuador], even if I think we could have played better as a team," Deschamps said in an interview with Fifa.com. “But it's important that as many players as possible are able to stay match-ready by getting playing time."

The coach also spoke about the ease with which France navigated the opening stage.

"It's a huge satisfaction for me and my staff," he went on. "I'm proud of what the players have achieved.

“We need to appreciate this moment: when you look at the other matches, you realise that this is a very difficult World Cup. Some big nations have already been eliminated, but we're still here."

In addressing the only failure of the opening round, France’s inability to score against Ecuador, Deschamps was relaxed and keen to pinpoint the problem, "We lacked efficiency, but we had a lot of chances.

"We were very prolific in our games before that, and that was important. It would have been better to continue in the same vein, but that doesn't spoil our joy at having qualified."

Finally, Deschamps looked ahead to France’s next opponents, Nigeria.

"They will undoubtedly cause us problems on a physical level and they have forwards who can make the difference at any moment," the coach continued.

Les Bleus meet the Super Eagles at the Estadio Nacional de Brasilia at 1pm local time on Monday.

Nigeria have returned to the World Cup knockout stages for the first time in 16 years and will be looking to become only the fourth-ever African side to make the quarter-finals of a World Cup.