Mbappé scores seventh World Cup goal to tie Messi, sends France through
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The United States may not be on the field on Independence Day, but France, which played an appropriately pivotal role in the Revolutionary War, was on the field for the big round of 16 clash against Paraguay in Philadelphia for a trip to the quarter-finals.
It was a hot day in the birthplace of our country and that made things difficult for both teams in many ways.
Although Paraguay were a great team, they were significantly underdogs against the heavily favored French team, led by superstar Kylian Mbappé, who lit up this tournament.
THIS ‘BEAUTIFUL AMERICA’ POST BEFORE THE FRANCE-PARAGUAY MATCH WILL MAKE YOUR THOUGHTS CONSIDERATE.
French and Paraguayan players engage in a shoving match in the Round of 16 match in Philadelphia on Saturday. (Kyle Ross-Imagn Images)
Obviously the heat itself is a factor, but it has also led to a slower pace, something that is believed to be in Paraguay’s favour.
However, most of the action in the first half was played on France’s side as they put on the pressure in the first half hour of the game.
It was a very intense match, and the intensity was further increased by some pushing and shoving after Mbappé and Paraguayan Andrés Cubas began a wild shoving match in the 35th minute.
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But while the intensity increased and remained high for almost the entire match, Paraguay weathered the storm and had every reason to feel good about going into the first half of the game goalless.
France created more scoring opportunities, including a near clearance by Mbappé early in the second half.
France’s Kylian Mbappe scored the game-winning goal by scoring the first goal against Paraguay on the penalty kick. (James Lang-Imagn Images)
In the 67th minute, France gave VAR the right to take a penalty kick for review due to a foul on Desire Doue, and Mbappé took it.
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Mbappé tended to do most of his damage in the second half and that trend continued here as he headed the penalty past Paraguay goalkeeper Orlando Gill.
It was his 19th career World Cup goal and his seventh in the tournament, tying him with Argentina’s Lionel Messi for the tournament lead.
Paraguay appeared to be weakened after Mbappé’s goal, but put the goal back into play late on, scoring Mike Maignan at around 89.5 minutes into the game. He had to make his first save of the day in the minute.
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It seemed that Paraguay’s plan was to put the French ahead and they managed to draw three yellow cards. They even tried to keep it up after the game so that the players would gather near midfield and push and shove some more.
But France moves on and they will face Morocco in the quarter-finals in Boston on Thursday.
