France coach Laurent Blanc is well aware of the threat posed by Ukraine striker Andriy Shevchenko.

The former Milan and Chelsea forward rose even higher in the estimation of fans in his homeland with both goals in their opening Group D win over Sweden.

As a former central defender, Blanc has witnessed first-hand the talents of the Ukrainian and knows that despite his advancing years - Shevchenko will be 36 in September - he remains a threat.

"Shevchenko is someone I know well. I was lucky enough to play against him and sometimes I was not happy at the end of it because he is not easy to play against," said the France coach ahead of the two countries' clash on Friday.

"He is no longer 20 but he is so clever with the runs that he makes and he showed that in the first game.

"We won't focus solely on Shevchenko. In my opinion, he's a great player and always in the right place at the right time.

"The big players perform at big tournaments and he is showing that."

Blanc felt his side under-performed in their opening 1-1 draw against England but expects an improvement against the co-hosts at the Donbass Arena in Donetsk.

"The problem in the side is that the attacking players did not make the difference but it's not just them," he added.

"They need to play with full confidence in their ability. They need to play near the opponent's goal and not far from it.

"We need confident and decisive players. They need to take the initiative and be confident."