Lloris confident of improvement

Hugo Lloris says he was disappointed to lose to Sweden but insists France will be better against Spain in the quarter-finals of Euro 2012.

Laurent Blanc’s men looked uninspired as they fell to a 2-0 defeat at the hands of the Swedes, who had already had their European Championship exit confirmed, and the loss condemned France to second place in Group D.

The Lyon keeper said Erik Hamren’s side deserved their victory, but remained positive about qualification despite being handed a tough last-eight showdown against the reigning world and European champions.

“I think Sweden deserved to win, but I have mixed feelings,” Lloris told reporters.

“We were playing to win but, unfortunately, we could never find the right pass, and we couldn’t find the right solutions. But against Spain it will be completely different.”

France enjoyed their fair share of possession against Hamren’s side and took 21 shots, but Sweden’s solid defence forced most of those to come from distance, with less than half hitting the target.

The France captain believes they will produce the goods against Vicente del Bosque’s team.

“A positive point is, of course, the fact we have qualified, and we have to bear that in mind. We must remain positive and prepare for what will be a difficult quarter-final, a great match,” Lloris said.

“It will be a great test for us, where we will have to show what we can do. We’ll have to be there and end that match with as few regrets as possible.”