France beats Albania by 2-0 at Euro 2016

Dimitri Payet

Marseille (France), June 16 IANS France beat Albania by 2-0 in Marseille and booked its place in the knockout rounds of Euro 2016 on Wednesday.

Antoine Griezmann and Dimitri Payet both scored late goals to give France a 2-0 win over the minnows.

The Atletico Madrid forward, initially named as a substitute, headed home with just a minute of normal time remaining after Adil Rami's superb cross from the right flank, and Payet added his second goal of the tournament with a terrific injury-time finish to confirm his side's victory,

France had previously wasted numerous opportunities to take the lead against the lowest-ranked team in the tournament, with striker Olivier Giroud guilty of missing a number of gilt-edged chances in Marseille.

However, it mattered little come the final whistle, with Les Bleus confirming their spot in the latter stages of the competition, with their victory confirming that they cannot finish lower than second in Group A.

--IANS

lok/