Sides play out dour draw, the first 0-0 of the World Cup in the 37th game
Wednesday 27 June 2018 13:06, UK
France topped Group C while Denmark secured qualification to the last 16 of the World Cup with a dour 0-0 draw on Tuesday.
With Peru beating Australia in the other final Group C game, neither side overexerted themselves in Nizhny Novgorod, with the crowd regularly jeering the pedestrian nature of play.
The result brought the first goalless draw of the tournament in the 37th game, and France will now play their last 16 game in Kazan on Saturday against the second-placed side in Group D.
Denmark are likely to face Croatia - favourites to top Group D - on Sunday in Nizhny.
Defences were on top during a first half with just one shot on target, Antoine Griezmann's curling effort collected easily by Kasper Schmeichel.
Christian Eriksen did have a chance at the other end from Andreas Cornelius' centre, but Lucas Hernandez and Steve Mandanda combined to snuff it out from 12 yards.
The second half followed a similar trend initially as Eriksen sprayed a half-volley a yard wide from the edge of the box, while sub Nabil Fekir hit the side-netting from an angle for France.
Fekir, whose move to Liverpool from Lyon broke down earlier this summer, saw his curling effort bound for the far corner beaten away by Schmeichel.
But the game was a victim of circumstance, with Peru going 2-0 up against Australia early in the second half.
That meant Denmark were all but guaranteed a second-place finish, but remained unwilling to force a winner to finish top.
The jeers at the full-time whistle from the frustrated Nizhny crowd were abundantly clear, but Denmark celebrated the result and progression to the knockout stage for the first time since 2002.
This award should really be going to the fans in Nizhny for sitting through the 90 minutes without leaving (though I'm sure a handful did...), but the Middlesbrough man did at least show some energy for Denmark in the opening stages.
He kept running in the second half and attempting to make space and stretch France's backline, but Denmark's midfielders were happier to sit without the ball and pass laterally with it.