France kept their winning record in the Toulon Tournament going after a slender 1-0 triumph over Bulgaria.

The French were the better side throughout and Sehrou Guirassy's thunderous strike sealed the three points.

Drab first half

The opening 20 minutes of the half provided little in the way of entertainment for either team's fans, especially the packed French crowd. There was an early booking for Maxime D'Aprino and a Samed Kilic free-kick that went narrowly past the Bulgarian far post.

Finally, however, the game sparked into some sort of life with Bingourou Kamara making a rather unorthodox save from Georgi Minchev's drive. That was followed by two opportunities in quick succession as Guirassy headed and shot wide of the mark, much to his annoyance.

Aleksandar Georgiev's late free-kick was high, wide and not at all handsome in the dying first half minutes but Antonio Vutov's cross required full attention from Kamara; the young stopper did well to get down to the ball before Minchev could. The final shot of the half was the most menacing and the only moment of real quality. A set-up on the edge of the box was perfect for Kilic to stride on to, though Georgi Kitanov parried to safety.

Guirassy gives France the win

It was another dull beginning to the second half but it was clear that France were the only team that looked like scoring. Kitanov made a smart early stop to deny a dipping volley. Guirassy then blasted wildly wide when a neat cross from Jonathan Bamba set him up to shoot.

The two teams continued to make changes throughout the 40 minutes to keep things fresh. Bamba, however, never slowed throughout the game. His run and cross were dealt with well by the Bulgarian defence just before a whipped Kilic attempt went narrowly over the bar.

With 10 minutes left, Guirassy finally applied the quality finish that the game had been lacking. Roli Pereira de Sa provided the ball to the edge of the box for the fierce foward to lash in from the edge of the area. The finish was clinical, but de Sa's burst of pace and awareness were equally impressive.

There was late drama at either end as Kiril Despodov wasted a great late chance when one-on-one with Kamara. France went back down the other end and Lys Mousset was superbly denied by Plamen Galabov's recovering tackle. Bamba hit the post with a volley and Kamara almost let the ball slide through his legs for an equaliser, but France held on to secure their second win of the tournament.

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About the author
Jonathan Walsh
SoccerSight IFA commentator. VAVEL deputy editor-in-chief/VAVEL Bundesliga editor-in-chief and writer. Email: [email protected]