Tchouameni fires France into halftime lead over England in quarter-final

AL KHOR, Qatar : France were leading England 1-0 at halftime in the last quarter-final match of the World Cup after Aurelien Tchouameni put the reigning champions in front after 17 minutes with a long-range strike on Saturday.

Shortly after Olivier Giroud had tested Jordan Pickford in the England goal with a header, midfielder Tchouameni found space outside the box and struck a shot that found the bottom corner at the Al Bayt stadium.

France keeper Hugo Lloris kept out his Tottenham Hotspur team mate Harry Kane twice while the England skipper felt aggrieved when he was denied a penalty following a challenge from Dayot Upamecano on the edge of the box.

The winners will play Morocco in the semi-finals at the same venue on Wednesday.