Ex-France playmaker Zinedine Zidane said France had played a "good match" in notching up a 1-0 victory over Finland in their opening qualifying match for the 2014 World Cup finals in Brazil.
"It was a good match, simply because Les Bleus won," Zidane said at a press conference marking the 140th anniversary of Le Havre AC -- the oldest club in France, for which a veterans match has been organised against some Real Madrid old boys.
"You have to give a little bit of time to the coach to put everything in place," he said of Didier Deschamps, for whom the Finland game was his first competitive match in charge of France.
Zidane also praised Karim Benzema, who produced the decisive assist for Alou Diaby's winning goal on Friday but has himself not scored this season either for France or his club Real Madrid.
"He still needs to put his game in place but everybody knows that he's a great player and I know he won't take long to express his full potential and qualities, not only in the France jersey but also that of Real Madrid," Zidane said.
Source: AFP
