France Demonstrates Versatile Victory Style at World Cup
PHILADELPHIA — France wanted to convey that there are multiple strategies for winning at the World Cup.
Kylian Mbappé made that clear on Saturday following France’s 1-0 victory over Paraguay, in front of a packed audience of 68,324 who braved the intense heat.
This win wasn’t glamorous; it was a gritty match that ended with a minor confrontation between French stars and Paraguayan goalkeeper Orlando Gil.
“If I have to get my hands dirty, I’ll do it,” Mbappé stated to broadcasters afterward. “They thought we’d just show up in style, pull some fancy moves, make a few passes. But we can also play a tougher game, and we did just that today. We came out on top.”
Mbappé found himself in several challenging situations, including a hard tackle late in the first half and the Paraguayan player tossing the ball to Gil.
Ultimately, Mbappé had the last laugh, scoring from a penalty kick in the 70th minute, after the video assistant referee identified a foul on Paraguay defender Gustavo Gomes.
This victory propels France into the quarter-finals against Morocco in Boston on Thursday.
In a notable achievement, the French soccer star matched Lionel Messi with seven goals in the tournament, scoring his 19th career goal in just 19 World Cup appearances since debuting for Les Bleus in 2018.
Interestingly, Mbappé is now just one goal shy of Messi in the World Cup scoring record.
Although France struggled to create opportunities, Paraguay’s physical play effectively disrupted Les Bleus’ typical strategy.
This robust approach from Paraguay even led French coach Didier Deschamps to urge his players to maintain composure.
“We had the lead, and if we fell into their style of play, we might struggle,” Deschamps noted, advising his team to keep focused.
Nonetheless, he also saw the aerial battles as beneficial, remarking that his team has appeared “easy” so far in the tournament.
“Luckily, I prepared the players well,” he said. “I’m not criticizing Paraguay. Every team plays their own way. It was tough, aggressive, and had its moments of pause, but my players were ready for it.”
Previously, France had scored at least three goals in their last five World Cup matches, leading up to the anticipated final against Argentina in 2022, but that streak was halted by a surprising performance from Paraguay.
The physicality of the match increased as it went on, with Mbappé reacting to Andres Cubas’ aggressive defense around the 35th minute, nearly igniting a clash between the teams.
Words were exchanged, and both sides rushed in to defend their players, leading to some pushing and shoving.
After halftime, France began to assert their offensive capabilities, almost scoring soon after the break. Mbappé made a break but couldn’t maintain control, allowing Paraguayan defenders to catch up.
A few moments later, Manu Kone fired a shot from outside the box, which required Gil to execute a diving save.
In light of the match’s intensity, William Saliba remarked that the referee could have issued a few more yellow cards.
“That might have calmed them down a little bit,” he said. “We can sometimes let our emotions escalate, but we stayed focused and managed to finish the match with 11 players. These matchups can be battles, and that’s simply the nature of the game. We faced the challenge head-on.”
The sweltering heat on Saturday was hard to ignore, with temperatures nearing 100 degrees at kickoff, only easing slightly as evening approached.
Before the game, FIFA held a ceremony to mark America’s 250th anniversary, featuring a military flyover, a performance by the Philadelphia Boys’ Choir, the Chorus and the Roots, and a rendition of the national anthem by Idina Menzel.
