Switzerland (the sixth ranked team in world) 2-5 France:

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Had it covered?: Full back Ricardo Rodriguez jumps to stop the head but Benaglio's hand got the final touch

Any England fans hoping their Gallic neighbours might provide a pick-me-up of sorts by succumbing to Switzerland were simply placed in a deeper state of disillusion after France produced a ferocious performance that suggested they may remain in Brazil for a good while longer.
Goals from Olivier Giroud, Blaise Matuidi, Mathieu Valbuena, Karim Benzema and Moussa Sissoko saw Ottmar Hitzfeld’s team destroyed in Salvador and promoted France to genuine title contenders.  
It certainly seems a lifetime since Didier Deschamps’s side were 2-0 down to Ukraine in the play-offs for this World Cup and on the verge of missing the tournament altogether.
Racing away: Blaise Matuidi wheels away after his slick finish for France's second goal
That this brilliant display came four years to the day since the French squad went on strike in South Africa throws the result into even sharper relief.     
This time everything is clicking and they will win Group E, thus likely avoiding Argentina in the second round, unless something dramatic occurs. The only other time France won both their opening games at a World Cup was in 1998, and we know what happened after that.
Switzerland have long boasted a fine defensive record at World Cups but France tore them apart with a first half of pace, pressure and poise that left Hitzfeld’s players looking bewildered.
How much of that was down to Steve Von Bergen’s departure after just eight minutes with a suspected fractured cheekbone is open to speculation. What is clear is that after he was forced off to hospital, following a brutal connection with Giroud’s high boot, Switzerland developed more holes than one of their famous cheeses.
New Aston Villa defender Philippe Senderos arrived to join his ex-Arsenal team-mate Johan Djourou and both showed why they are no longer in Arsene Wenger’s ranks.

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