France rode goals from Raphael Varane and Antoine Griezmann to ease past Uruguay 2-0 in a big-ticket FIFA World Cup last-eight stage clash here on Friday.

Varane (40th) glanced past goalkeeper Fernando Muslera after Griezmann floated a free-kick into the box from the right side. In the second half, Griezmann (61st) made the most of a goalkeeping howler from Muslera to double the advantage as France eased into the semi-finals where they will now take on either Brazil and Belgium. The South American team was dealt a blow before the match when striker Edinson Cavani was left out of the side, having failed to recover from a calf injury. He was replaced in the starting eleven by Girona forward Cristhian Stuani.