France Held to 0-0 Draw vs. Luxembourg in 2018 FIFA World Cup Qualifying

France were held to an embarrassing 0-0 draw with bottom side Luxembourg in FIFA World Cup 2018 qualifying at the Stadium Municipal in Toulouse on Sunday.The draw puts France back on top of Group A, following Sweden's 4-0 win over Belarus earlier, but it means they are just one point clear with two games left to play.France coachDidierDeschampsmade just one change to the side that beat Netherlands 4-0 on Thursday, bringing inKylianMbappefor KingsleyComan:Despite naming an attacking lineup, with OlivierGiroud, AntoineGriezmann, Thomas Lemar andMbappeall starting, France failed to break the deadlock in the first half despite dominating proceedings.The first real chance for the hosts fell toGriezmann, after great work byMbappe, but he could not keep his shot down and fired well over the crossbar.The visitors continued to press, however, withMbappeat the heart of their best moves and doing enough to impress Goals RobinBairner:The Paris Saint-Germain star was looking particularly impressive in possession, showcasing his dribbling ability out on the right, as noted bySquawka:France were not afraid to take aim at the Luxembourg goal, and their first-half dominance was neatly illustrated byOpta:The second half continued in much the same fashion, with France still unable to find a way past a stubborn visiting side, which left football writer Daniel Harris critical ofDeschamps:The France coach then opted to change things on the hour mark, taking offMbappeandGiroudand bringing on KingsleyComanand AlexandreLacazette.The hosts did go close immediately afterward, withDjibrilSidibegetting on the end of Lemar's cross and headinggoalward,but goalkeeper JonathanJoubertmanaged to push it around the post.SubstituteLacazettethen almost managed to grab a goal but saw his effort blocked on the line with Luxembourg's defending coming in for praise from Tom Coast at Sport Witness:France then went even closer, with PaulPogbalashing a shot against the crossbar before the visitors stunned the home crowd by hitting the post throughGersonRodrigues, much to the delight of football writer PhilippeAuclair:Deschamps' men continued to press in the closing stage but were simply unable to find a way past an organised, disciplined and determined visiting team.Although the draw is unlikely to damage France's World Cup qualification hopes, it will be seen as a disappointment that a team with so much attacking talent could not find a way past a side ranked 136th in the world, according toFIFA, at home.
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