France advance to WC knockout stage post goalless Ecuador draw

France finished top of Group E despite a goalless draw with Ecuador to advance to the last 16 stage of the 2014 FIFA World Cup tied against Nigeria.

Antoine Griezmann, Paul Pogba, Karim Benzema and Loic Remy went close to scoring a goal, but Ecuador, which had captain Antonio Valencia sent off, left Didier Deschamps side frustrated.

France needed a point to advance to the knockout stage, thanks to impressive victories over Honduras and Switzerland, and now with the draw against Ecuador, they would meet Nigeria in Brasilia on Monday, the BBC reported.

Deschamps, who made six changes to his starting line-up, said that he is satisfied, France has finished first in the group, the squad has qualified for the knockout round and all is well.

Deschamps said that his team selection was not by chance and it's important that all players get into the rhythm, adding that now they have five days to prepare for their game against Nigeria.

The coach said that Ecuador had a team with 10 players in front of France defending well, adding that his side had an enormous number of chances and were disappointed that they were not as effective as in their previous matches.