Match Analysis: France 3-0 Honduras

France went into their opening World Cup game against Honduras in Group E looking to banish the ghosts that haunted Les Bleus in South Africa four years ago.

Here, Sports Mole runs a microscope over France's 3-0 victory, providing you with an analysis of the 90 minutes at the Estadio Beira-Mar in Porto Alegre.

Match statistics

France Shots: 20 On target: 5 Possession: 71% Corners: 8 Fouls: 13

Honduras Shots: 4 On target: 1 Possession: 29% Corners: 0 Fouls: 14

Was the result fair?

France were deserved winners at the Estadio Beira-Mar. Les Bleus were able to move the ball a lot quicker than their opponents and their transitions from midfield into attack were of particular quality. Honduras were unable to respond and were only able to find solace in producing a number of ill-timed, poorly thought-out challenges.

France's performance

Didier Deschamps should be given a lot of credit for the way he's managed to turn this France side around. He's managed to pull everyone into line and get the players participating for each other. They were able to show this all over the pitch tonight, especially in their link-up play between midfield and attack. Paul Pogba and Mathieu Valbuena showed guile in the middle of the park, while Karim Benzema played with a real cutting edge up front.

Honduras' performance

Well, where to start? This was the first time the two sides had met on the international stage, but you'd have thought there was some kind of history between the two given how aggressively the Hondurans approached this tie. Wilson Palacios was of particular concern to the French having committed a number of poor fouls, and he was lucky to stay on the pitch for as long as he did. As well as their poor approach to sportsmanship, the Hondurans seemed to be playing without much of a plan. The few times they were in possession they sought to move forward far too quickly and needlessly gave the ball away to the French.

Sports Mole's man of the match

Karim Benzema: Benzema was the standout player on the pitch tonight, but the majority of the French side played excellently. The Real Madrid striker caused problems with his strength from the off, showed composure for his penalty and great awareness for both of the second-half goals. His movement was important too, giving the Honduran defence little time to think about when to press and when to drop deep, leaving time for Valbuena and Pogba to find room in and around the box.

Biggest gaffe

The performance of Palacios was a gaffe in itself. If his side did have a plan, then he tore it straight up with a real showing of petulance. He was lucky to remain on the pitch for as long as he did, given that he poorly stamped on Pogba only five or so minutes before the sending off.

Referee performance

Sandro Meira Ricci had a fairly good game, though he was a little too trigger happy with the cards. He did well to extinguish the flames following the spat between Pogba and Palacios, though he could have shown a bit more conviction with an early red for the Honduran midfielder.

What next?

France: France take on Switzerland next in what will be billed as their hardest game in the group. Tonight's victory won't change much for Les Bleus as they were always expected to beat Honduras, however they'll make a statement to other teams if they're able to pick apart the Swiss with the same ease on Thursday.

Honduras: The Hondurans will need to think of something a little better if they want to take something away from this tournament. Far too often did they revert to brutish tactics tonight and they'll surely come unstuck when they play the possession-maintaining Swiss. However, first they have to face Ecuador on Friday, which could go either way.