Griezmann scores but 10-man France held by Bosnia in World Cup qualifying

STRASBOURG, France - World Cup holders France needed a scrappy Antoine Griezmann equaliser before holding on with 10 men to draw 1-1 with Bosnia and Herzegovina as they resumed their campaign to qualify for the 2022 finals in Qatar.

Edin Dzeko gave Bosnia a first-half lead in Strasbourg on Wednesday but soon after his headed clearance ricocheted back off Griezmann and just crossed the line to restore parity.

France were then handicapped by the 51st-minute sending-off of Sevilla defender Jules Kounde for a terrible tackle on Arsenal's Sead Kolasinac.

The frustrating result, following their disappointing last-16 exit at Euro 2020, nevertheless keeps France on course to top Group D and qualify automatically for the next World Cup.

They have eight points from four games, four more than second-placed Ukraine, who drew 2-2 in Kazakhstan on Wednesday and who host France in Kiev at the weekend.

"It is obviously harder with 10 men. We had some chances but it is not the result we were looking for," admitted France coach Didier Deschamps to broadcaster M6.

"Of course we wanted the three points but these qualifying campaigns are difficult for everyone.

"We have one more point and we'll need to go looking for more in the remaining matches."

Both Kounde's red card and the Griezmann goal brought into sharp focus the belated introduction of VAR by UEFA for the World Cup qualifiers -- it was not in use in the first three rounds of matches in March but has now been hastily implemented across the continent.

Griezmann's goal was shown to have crossed the line, despite the efforts of Bosnian goalkeeper Ibrahim Sehic to claw it away, after the Swiss officials reviewed the images.

Kounde had initially been shown a yellow card for his reckless tackle on Kolasinac but that was upgraded to red on review.

AFP