France, led by superstar Kylian Mbappé, defeated Paraguay in a physical Round of 16 match in the World Cup. The match was played in Philadelphia on a hot day, which made things difficult for both teams.
Match Details
The first half was intense, with France putting pressure on Paraguay. The intensity boiled over in the 35th minute with a wild shoving match between Mbappé and Paraguay’s Andrés Cubas. However, Paraguay weathered the storm and reached halftime with the game scoreless.
In the second half, France was awarded a penalty kick for a foul against Desire Doue, which Mbappé took and drilled past Paraguay’s goaltender Orlando Gill. This was Mbappé’s 19th career World Cup goal and his seventh of the tournament, tying him with Argentina’s Lionel Messi for the tournament lead.
Paraguay seemed to fade after the Mbappé goal but turned it on again late, forcing France’s Mike Maignan to make his first save of the day. France will take on Morocco in a quarterfinal match on Thursday in Boston.
Original reporting: Fox News (HLL/CB) — read the source article.
