With opening day draws for both of these nations, France and Mexico needed to think about victory. But only one team can win.

The game started lively enough but it's still surprising to see so many shots going high and wide at this level; of wait, let's blame the ball.
The longer the half wore on, the more desperate the situation looked - especially for France - with too many passes going astray.

Mexico looked more dangerous going forward but were let down by poor finishing; while France, just didn't know where to look most of the time.

Half-time: 0:0

France really needed to do something in the second-half to save their tournament. If Mexico were to win here, a Mexico draw with Uruguay would see the two Latin Americans through; no matter what South Africa and France did.

A scrappy start to the second-half might have suggested that the mathematical probabalities were playing in the minds of the French players and freezing them, like the fingers in their matching blue gloves.

Nine minutes after coming on, Javier Hernandez left the France defence motionless to run on to a through ball and round Hugo Lloris unchallenged.

France made it even harder for themselves when Abidal brought down Pablo Barrera in the penalty area. With just over ten minutes to go, 37 year-old Cuauhtemoc Blanco slotted the ball home from the spot to put the game beyond France's reach.

France, who needed the helping hand of Henry to qualify for South Africa now need help from Uruguay; and for South Africa to have less will to win than the French. Now that would be fantasy football.

Laurent Blanc could be the manager of France a couple of weeks earlier than he thought.

France 0 Mexico 2

The first ever winners of the World Cup met the scorers of the first ever World Cup Finals goal - that was Uruguay 1930, this is now; South Africa 2010.

France and Uruguay have a history of nil-nil draws, so why should we have expected anything else in Cape Town?

If there were problems in the French camp it didn't show on the pitch in the opening minutes of the match against Uruguay; as swift passing and confident movement almost enabled Sidney Govou to snatch the lead for France.

And that was really the best chance of the first forty-five minutes.

Sadly, for most of the second-half neither team had much to offer; even the feeble French chorus of 'Allez les Bleus' could hardly be heard above the vuvuzela drone.

Only with fifteen minutes to go did the teams realise that winning the game might be something to aim for.

But then Uruguay substitute, Nicolas Lodeiro, collected his second yellow card in less than twenty minutes on the pitch and reduced his team to ten men.

France tried to add fresh attacking options while Uruguay sought to hold on to the one point.

But the minutes ticked away and Thierry Henry's free-kick was headed away in the final seconds.

Uruguay 0 France 0