France has room for hope with new-look side

ZURICH: France launches a new era in tentative fashion when it kick off its Euro 2008 campaign against Romania on Monday.

The 2006 World Cup runner-up, facing a daunting task in a tough Group C also featuring Netherlands and world champion Italy, is unsure what to expect from its first major finals in more than a decade without Zinedine Zidane as playmaker.

With the balding maestro now retired France needs to find a new talisman and the right balance between ageing stalwarts and exciting youngsters.