Group C winners France, who beat Australia 2-1, defeated Peru 1-0 and played out a goalless draw with Denmark in the group stage match of the tournament, will take on Argentina in Kazan on Saturday.

"I'm not looking for excuses for the critics following the group stage matches. There were 14 players in our squad who had never played at a World Cup when we faced Australia, some newcomers started against Denmark, too. They lacked experience. We're back to square one in the knockout stage... Some teams that performed great in the group stage were crashed out after the first round of the knockout stage. We remember that," Deschamps told journalists.

The 49-year-old French added that he was happy to train his team.

"I'm happy to train the French national team for more than six years. We've made it to the Euro finals, we've had many great matches... I care about tomorrow's game most," Deschamps said.

The 2018 FIFA World Cup kicked off on June 14 and will continue until July 15, with the matches being played in 11 cities across Russia.