THE French progressed to the second round of the Euro 2016 they’re hosting with a 2-0 win over debutant Albania, keeping their supporters and coach Didier Deschamps on edge right to the end Wednesday.

    Atletico Madrid forward Antoine Griezmann came off the bench in Marseille to head the opener in the 90th minute before West Ham United’s Dimitri Payet strengthened his reputation by smashing home a second deep into stoppage time.

    Payet also struck a late winner as France opened the tournament with a nervy 2-1 win over Romania.

    “This is becoming a bit of a habit, I’d prefer us to break the deadlock a bit earlier,” said a relieved French coach Didier Deschamps.

    “Until the final whistle is blown there is still a chance to win the game, especially against teams that you have to wear down.”

    However, two leave-it-late wins left doubts about whether Deschamps’s side can repeat the feats of French sides past at the 1984 Euros and 1998 World Cup by winning on home soil.

    Deschamps surprisingly left Juventus star Paul Pogba and Griezmann on the bench in the only two changes from the game against Romania.

    Les Bleus only kicked into gear with Pogba and Griezmann reunited with the mercurial Payet after the break.

    “We needed a win to qualify, and it’s done,” Griezmann told French television.

    “The coach had told me that I would be a substitute. I knew it and I wanted to do what I had to do once I got on.”

    Griezmann finally made the breakthrough as the clock ticked into stoppage time, stooping to turn home Adil Rami’s cross.

    And Payet capped another man-of-the-match performance by firing into the far corner to round off a harsh scoreline on Albania.

    France next faces Switzerland in Lille on Sunday with the Swiss also on the verge of reaching the knockout stage after a 1-1 draw with Romania in Paris.

    Bogdan Stancu’s penalty gave Romania the advantage at the Parc des Princes. The Swiss spurned a host of chances to score before Admir Mehmedi finally slammed home to level just before the hour mark.

    “We can be satisfied with a point. We were able to take an important step towards the next round and to be almost sure of reaching the last 16,” said Swiss coach Vladimir Petkovic.

    Stancu is fast becoming a penalty specialist at these championships, having also scored from the spot in the 2-1 defeat to France to join Payet as the only player to score twice at the tournament so far.

    But the Swiss burst back into the game when Macedonian-born Mehmedi slammed home a loose ball from a corner in the 57th minute after the Romanian defense failed to clear.

    Russia moved to the brink of bowing out for its efforts on the field with a 2-1 defeat to Slovakia.(SD-Agencies)