Mbappe Scores Again as France Survive Physical Paraguay Battle to Reach Quarter-Finals
Kylian Mbappe scored his tournament-leading seventh goal from the penalty spot as France overcame a physical Paraguay side 1-0 in stifling Philadelphia heat, setting up a quarter-final clash with Morocco .
Mbappe Scores Again as France Survive Physical Paraguay Battle to Reach Quarter-Finals
The decisive moment came in the 70th minute when substitute Desire Doue was brought down in the penalty area by Diego Gomez, and referee Ilgiz Tantashev pointed to the spot after a VAR review. Mbappe stepped up and coolly sent goalkeeper Orlando Gill the wrong way, slotting into the bottom-right corner for his 19th career World Cup goal in as many appearances.
The goal moved him level with Lionel Messi on seven goals in this tournament's Golden Boot race, while leaving him just one behind the Argentine's all-time record of 20. The match was played in punishing conditions, with an extreme heat warning in effect as temperatures hovered around 38°C (100°F).
France dominated possession throughout, making 568 passes to Paraguay's 183 and enjoying 76% control, but struggled to break down a deep 5-4-1 defensive block that frustrated them for 70 minutes.The first half passed without a single shot on target, only the third World Cup knockout game since 1966 to achieve that unwanted statistic.
Paraguay's physical approach was a major talking point, with the South Americans committing 18 fouls without a single player receiving a yellow card, while three France players were booked for far less. Andres Cubas escaped punishment after clattering into Adrien Rabiot, Juan Jose Caceres kicked out at Mbappe, Gabriel Avalos dropped an elbow into Dayot Upamecano's stomach, and Gustavo Velazquez even attempted to scuff the penalty spot before Mbappe's kick.
Former England goalkeeper Joe Hart called Paraguay's players "an absolute disgrace" on BBC, while ex-Germany midfielder Thomas Hitzlsperger said he had "no respect" for their conduct. The victory extends France's perfect record at this tournament to 6-0, with Les Bleus outscoring opponents 14-2 . It is their fourth consecutive World Cup quarter-final appearance, as Didier Deschamps became the first coach to secure 10 World Cup knockout victories.
Deschamps revealed afterwards that he had to instruct his "two biggest lads to go and stand around Kylian at the end because they were going to chop him down". France will now face Morocco in the quarter-finals, a rematch of the 2022 semi-final which Les Bleus won 2-0 .
Source: TrendyBeatz
