England can kickstart their Euro2012 campaign with a positive result against France today according to Jermain Defoe.
The Tottenham striker is aware how important it is to begin major tournaments on a winning note and feels that the rest of the competition can be set up if the Three Lions successfully negotiate the French.
"France are a great footballing nation, they've got great players. But I don't think it's a bad thing playing such a tough team in our first game.
"I think if you win a difficult game like that, it brings confidence to the camp going into the next game.
"It's important at a tournament to get off to good start. I think that if we can do that, it will help hugely with the following matches.""It's going to be a tough game," he the club's official website ahead of the Group D clash in Donetsk.