Australia deserved draw against France, says coach van Marwijk

Kazan, June 16 (IANS) Australia head coach Bert van Marwijk said on Saturday that his team "deserved a draw" in their FIFA World Cup encounter with France.

The game, which took place here on Saturday, ended in a 2-1 victory for France, reports Sputnik news agency.

"I'm proud and disappointed. I think we gave a very good performance. Nobody expected that we could play like this against France. I think there were a lot of moments (when) they (France) didn't know what to do anymore. It's a big compliment for us," van Marwijk told journalists.

"If you lose them with a penalty, you can discuss. The way they (Australia) wanted to play they did it 95 percent. I cannot blame any of my players, I only can make them compliments. We deserved to play a draw," he added.

The matches of the 2018 FIFA World Cup will be held at 12 stadiums across 11 Russian cities till July 15.

(This story has not been edited by Social News XYZ staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)