Beaten World Cup finalists and still the European team with the most top-quality players, France are likely to qualify despite their defeat to Scotland. However, in the group of death nothing can be taken for granted.

Despite obvious strength with players such as Thuram, Gallas and Boumsong at the back, Makalele, Dibay and Vierra in midfield and Thierry Henry, Saha and Trezeguet up front, this is a still a team that sometimes lacks the cohesion of, for example, the German and Italian sides.

With things tight at the top of Group B, the wrong results against Scotland, Ukraine and Italy could see a return to the anonymous form that France found in the early nineties following Plantini’s retirement: French fans will hope that their squad is strong enough to withstand the departure of talismanic Zinedine Zidane.