France started their quest for Euro 2024 glory with a narrow 1-0 victory over Austria after Max Wober's first-half own-goal proved decisive in Dusseldorf.
The two-time European Championship winners had to wait until the 38th minute for their breakthrough, with Wober turning Kylian Mbappe's cross into his own net on Monday.
Les Bleus held on in the second half to earn Didier Deschamps his 100th win in charge of France, though there was concern as Mbappe received lengthy treatment for a head injury late on before being withdrawn.
Deschamps will hope Mbappe is passed fit after that issue as France prepare for Friday's clash with fellow Group D leaders Netherlands, who share top spot in the pool after overcoming Poland 2-1 on Sunday.
Deschamps' men settled into their seamless groove early on, with Mbappe racing clear of the Austria defence before seeing his effort repelled by the strong palm of Patrick Pentz.
Yet for all of France's dominance in possession, Austria remained resolute in defence and almost struck first against the run of play 10 minutes before the interval.
Christoph Baumgartner found himself unmarked inside the France box after Marcel Sabitzer's deft knockdown, but was unable to find a way beyond the onrushing Mike Maignan when rushing a glorious chance.
Just two minutes later, Deschamps' deadly attack showed their ruthless nature as Mbappe chopped inside before delivering towards the near post, where Wober inadvertently headed past the helpless Pentz.
Mbappe should have doubled France's lead after the interval but somehow fired wide when one-on-one with Pentz, leaving the Real Madrid-bound forward still waiting for a first European Championship goal.
Les Bleus remained the most likely to find a decisive second goal but Theo Hernandez's teasing delivery just evaded Antoine Greizmann before Marcus Thuram also went close.
Yet the battling victory was marred by the injury to Mbappe, who was forced off in the final minute of normal time after suffering a concerning blow to his nose when challenging for an aerial duel with Kevin Danso.
Mbappe's wait for maiden Euro goal goes on
Mbappe produced an influential display but was far from his clinical best for Les Bleus as his first goal at this tournament continues to elude him.
The former Paris Saint-Germain attacker has now failed to convert any of his last 17 shots at the competition, in stark contrast to the 12 goals he has managed from 39 attempts at the World Cup.
His one-on-one opportunity in the second half had an expected goals tally (xG) of 0.6, second only behind Griezmann's opportunity (0.75 xG) in the area 11 minutes later.
Aside from Mbappe, France were wasteful in the final third as a collective, registering just three shots on target in the contest from 14 attempts – underperforming their xG by 1.03.
Austria down, but certainly not out
Ralf Rangnick's team can be proud of their defensive display against France's star-studded attacking line, with their fighting efforts seeing them make the most tackles (27) of any side at the tournament so far.
However, their struggles against Les Bleus continued as Austria have now won just one of their last 11 meetings against France in all competitions, with that sole victory coming in 2008.
Austria will still hope to replicate their last-16 run at Euro 2020, their best-ever finish in the competition, and face Poland in Berlin on Friday before concluding their group campaign against the Netherlands.
Querfeld confident Austria can beat anyone at Euro 2024 after Netherlands win
Austria midfielder Leopold Querfeld is confident his side can beat anyone at Euro 2024 after reaching the knockout stages in Germany.
Querfeld, who represented his nation twice before the start of the tournament, made his European Championship debut in Austria's win over the Netherlands on Tuesday.
The defender played 26 minutes as Ralf Rangnick's side finished top of Group D following France's 1-1 draw with Poland.
"It's by no means something that can be taken for granted, but it's definitely something we thought we could do," Querfeld said.
"The evening after the game was extremely nice. We brought friends and family to the hotel, were able to spend a cozy evening together and had a really nice time,"
Austria will watch this evening's action with interest to discover who their opponents will be at the Leipzig Stadium next Tuesday.
Rangnick's side will face the runners-up of Group F, with Turkiye, Czechia and Georgia all in with a shout of progressing to the knockout stages on Matchday 3.
But given their performances in the tournament so far, Querfeld is confident that Austria can reach the quarter-finals for the first time in their history.
"No matter what opponent we get, they will have a very difficult time against us," he said.
'I knew it could be good' - Sabitzer proud after earning Austria top spot
Marcel Sabitzer is proud of not only his winning goal, but also the strength Austria showed in their 3-2 victory over the Netherlands on Tuesday.
Ralf Rangnick's side were drawn into a group including pre-tournament favourites France, the Netherlands and Poland, and few expected them to come out on top.
However, after narrowly losing their opening to Les Bleus, Austria beat Poland 3-1 before Sabitzer struck the winner – his first goal at the European Championships – against the Netherlands to see them finish first in Group D.
With a last-16 tie against one of the best third-place teams still to come, Sabitzer is confident in Austria's togetherness.
"I got the ball deep, I looked up to see if someone was free in the middle, but I got the impression that [the Netherlands] had more men there. In the past, the left foot has often helped me, so I thought that was the moment I could give it a try," Sabitzer told reporters.
"As soon as the ball left my foot, I knew it could be good.
"We are all footballers who want to win games, and that is our objective in every game. And if you have moments where things are a bit more difficult, and it goes back and forth, then the question is how does the team react to that.
"You can be proud of the unity we have, the mentality we have on the pitch ... we used our strengths, the goal was very nicely worked. So many Austrians who watch us in the stadium trust us, and we want to give them something back."
Panama v United States: Turner says results everything for Copa America hosts
United States goalkeeper Matt Turner has urged fans of the Copa America hosts not to forget the value of results ahead of Thursday's clash with Panama at Mercedes-Benz Stadium.
The USA got their Group C campaign up and running with a 2-0 win over Bolivia, with Christian Pulisic and Folarin Balogun on target.
Some believed Gregg Berhalter's side should have recorded a more comprehensive victory as they racked up 20 shots on goal to Bolivia's six.
Nottingham Forest shot-stopper Turner, though, says tournament wins should not be taken for granted.
"We'll never have that luxury. I think you take wins when you can get wins, no matter the context," Turner said.
"You take the result, especially in tournament play, it's the end all be all. I implore people to not lose sight of that.
"Obviously, we wish we did some things better, but that's what tournaments are about. You want to improve and get better throughout the tournament and keep growing as a team, and a bond and a culture.
"At the end of the day, we got a clean sheet, we scored two goals and we won. Going into this next match, we know we might have to be a little bit better if we want to win."
Panama, meanwhile, were beaten 3-1 by Marcelo Bielsa's Uruguay in their opening match, with Amir Murrillo netting a late consolation after Maximiliano Araujo, Darwin Nunez and Matias Vina scored for the 15-time winners.
"I think we had too much respect for Uruguay, in the first half there were too many mistakes," head coach Thomas Christiansen said.
"They're a great team that you have to respect, but I think in moments we were afraid of making a mistake.
"In the second half, we showed this team is alive with enthusiasm and desire. Now it's time to make another big effort against the United States before ending with Bolivia."
PLAYERS TO WATCH
Panama – Amir Murillo
Murillo netted a late consolation against Uruguay, also recording the most touches (62) and joint-most touches in the penalty area (four, also Jose Fajardo) of any Panama player in their opening match.
That game saw Panama surpass 250 completed passes in a Copa America game for the first time. They will not be pushovers in Atlanta, but if they are to really trouble the hosts, they need wing-back Murillo to contribute in the attacking third.
United States – Christian Pulisic
Pulisic provided a goal and an assist as the USA beat Bolivia in their Group C opener, becoming the first American to score and assist in a single Copa America match since Clint Dempsey did so twice in 2016, versus Ecuador and Costa Rica.
Pulisic averages 0.93 goal contributions per 90 minutes in competitive matches for his country, the highest rate in their history (minimum 1,500 minutes played).
The Milan winger also recorded the most line-breaking passes in the attacking third of any player during Group C's first set of games, with four.
Until the USA's first match, only Rodrigo De Paul of Argentina had reached that figure in the tournament's opening round of fixtures.
MATCH PREDICTION: UNITED STATES WIN
After beating Bolivia, the USA could start a Copa America tournament with back-to-back victories for the very first time.
Only once before have they managed successive wins in the competition, winning three games in a row up to the quarter-finals in 2016, as they finished fourth on home soil.
They have never lost or even conceded a goal to CONMEBOL opponents at the Copa America, drawing 0-0 with Mexico in the 1995 quarter-finals before triumphing on penalties, and routing Costa Rica 4-0 in the group stage in 2016.
The USA have only failed to score in one of their previous 19 matches against Panama on home soil, in a goalless draw in New Jersey in the 2005 Gold Cup final, which they won via spot-kicks.
With home advantage on their side, we expect more joy for the USA on Thursday.
OPTA WIN PROBABILITY
Panama – 22.6%
United States – 54.7%
Draw – 22.7%
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