France 0-0 Switzerland

A goalless draw between France and Switzerland leaves both of them two points beneath early leader Korea Republic in Group G.

Switzerland proved to be a tough nut to crack for France and is a repeat of their recent encounters where they have already drawn twice during the qualifying matches to the World Cup. This was a tight match with few clear-cut scoring opportunities. The closest either side came was when Swiss midfielder Tranquillo Barnetta's free-kick bounced back off a post and Alexander Frei failed to convert the rebound.

It seems France have not shaken away the nightmare of World Cup 2002 where they arrived in Asia with great hopes of retaining their title, only to exit the competition without a single point and, more embarrassingly, without having netted a single goal. In other words, they have gone eight years since 1998 without scoring in the World Cup Finals.

France have world-class strikers in its rank with Thierry Henry, David Trezeguet, Djibril Cisse (out with a broken leg) and Louis Saha, so they should not have any excuses with the lack of strikers.

Soccer Pundit feels that they need to inject more creativity into their link-up play in midfield and create the proper chances for the strikers. Right now, the over-dependence on Henry and Zinedine Zidane is hurting France's chances of advancing. Other players have to step up to relieve their load. In this match, they brought on a newcomer Franck Ribery, an exciting player who has the power and explosive acceleration. Time will tell if he will be able to take over the midfield role once Zidane retires..