Birmingham had Barry Ferguson to thank for clearing the ball off Utaka's head after a knock-back by the impressive Piquionne, before SebLarsson forced James into a tip-over at the other end.
England survived some nervous moments on either side of Devic's disallowed shot, but held on to reach the knockout round with something to spare as Seb Larsson's late goal condemned France to its first defeat in 23 games.