Result not display satisfies Blanc

He was not enamoured by France’s display, but manager Laurent Blanc saw his side’s qualification for Euro 2012 as a ‘great satisfaction’.

Samir Nasri rescued France with a second-half penalty to cancel out Manchester City teammate Edin Dzeko’s opener for Bosnia and Herzegovina, as Les Bleus won Group D to advance – just a point ahead of their opponents.

The 1-1 draw was just enough to edge out Bosnia and Herzegovina, who must now win through the playoff stages if they are to qualify for the tournament in Poland and the Ukraine.

Blanc said he was relieved to see his side through to the finals and underlined their qualification as the most important factor, despite a sub-par performance.

“It was a tough match, but in the end, it is a great satisfaction because we have qualified for Euro 2012,” Blanc said.

“This qualification was particularly hard to secure. We were prepared for a tough game, and what happened on the pitch matched our expectations.”

“Even if France’s display was disappointing, it was mainly because of the quality of the Bosnia team, who were very confident and controlled the game.”

Bosnia and Herzegovina managed 12 shots on France’s goal to just seven in reply, as the home nation’s supporters grew agitated at the Stade de France.

The 45-year-old revealed that he urged his players to react in the second half after France had been on the back foot during the opening period.

“We simply did not play the first half,” Blanc said. “In my half-time talk, I asked the players if they wanted a place in the playoffs or in Euro 2012.”

“I was stunned with the errors we made in the first half. Tonight, we can mostly be happy with what we did in the second half.”

“It was encouraging, but we must do it during the whole 90 minutes. What I liked the most is that the players reacted, otherwise we would be talking about the playoffs.”

France finished their qualifying campaign with 21 points from 10 games after six wins, three draws and one defeat, with Bosnia one point adrift in second.