Defending champions France eased to a comfortable 3-1 win over Poland to make it to the quarterfinals of the FIFA World Cup.
At the Al Thumama Stadium, a brace from Kylian Mbappe and a record-breaking goal from Olivier Giroud helped Didier Deschamps’ team’s cause.
Poland’s Robert Lewandowski managed to get a consolation strike in injury stoppage time from the penalty spot. Kylian Mbappe was good enough to score 2 goals against Poland in the Round of 16 in the competition. With the goals, Mbappe broke the legendary Pele’s 60-year-old record.
Also Read Japan shock Spain, four times champion Germany eliminated
Giroud (44th minute) scored just before half-time to open the door, and Mbappe (74 and 90’+1) marched through it with two scorchers in the second half. Lewandowski (90+9) scored in the ninth minute of stoppage time to salvage some pride.
Poland, in the knockout stage for the first time since 1986 and looking for a first quarterfinal appearance since 1982, was the better team in the first half but could not convert their chances in the first while France managed to latch on to the chance to score with a minute left for the first half.
France’s goal-scoring move started with Dayot Upamecano, who gave the ball to Mbappe, 25 yards out in the inside-left channel. He threaded it down the side to Giroud, who essayed a left-footed drive across Wojciech Szczesny and into the corner.
It was Giroud’s 52nd goal for Les Bleus, which puts him one ahead of Thierry Henry and etched his name into the France history books as the all-time top scorer for the Les Blues.
The Milan striker had equaled Henry’s 51-goal record with a brace in a 4-1 win over Australia in his nation’s World Cup opener, leaving him one shy of the outright benchmark.
The former Chelsea and Arsenal striker would likely have not started for Deschamps’ side if it had not been for pre-tournament injuries to Karim Benzema and Christopher Nkunku.
(This story has been sourced from a third-party syndicated feed, agencies. Raavi Media accepts no responsibility or liability for the dependability, trustworthiness, reliability, and data of the text. Raavi Media managementythisnews.com reserves the sole right to alter, delete or remove (without notice) the content at its absolute discretion for any reason whatsoever.)
