Mbappe spot kick carries France past Paraguay into World Cup quarter-finals

PHILADELPHIA, United States (AFP) — France required a second-half penalty from Kylian Mbappe to overcome a resolute Paraguay on Saturday, securing a 1-0 victory in a tense World Cup round-of-16 tie and booking a quarter-final date with Morocco.

Paraguay spent much of the match trying to unsettle France’s star players, and that approach held firm for long stretches before a crowd of 68,324 at Lincoln Financial Field amid punishing heat. Les Bleus eventually found the breakthrough when Mbappe struck from 12 yards in the 70th minute after Desire Doue was fouled.

The display was far from the free-flowing football France had shown earlier in the tournament, though Paraguay’s organisation left little room for anything else. Possession stayed heavily in French hands, while Paraguay did not register a shot on target until the closing minute.

Mbappe’s individual tournament form remained sharp as he moved level with Lionel Messi as joint leading scorer on seven goals. The Real Madrid forward has now scored 19 times across 19 World Cup appearances, leaving him one goal shy of Messi’s career mark of 20.

Didier Deschamps will take his squad back to their Boston camp ahead of Thursday’s last-eight fixture in nearby Foxborough against Morocco, who earlier dispatched Canada 3-0.

Temperatures in Philadelphia reached 38 degrees Celsius (100 degrees Fahrenheit), with authorities issuing severe weather alerts amid the possibility of storms. France’s previous outing at the same venue during the group stage was disrupted when rain and thunder forced a two-hour stoppage during a 3-0 win over Iraq.

Saturday’s match proceeded without delay on the 250th anniversary of United States independence, in the city where the Declaration of Independence was signed in 1776. A pre-game programme on the pitch included Idina Menzel singing the US national anthem, a set from hip-hop group The Roots, and a flyover by the US Air Force. Citywide July 4 fireworks were scheduled for later in the evening, while France’s expected attacking fireworks were kept in check for extended periods.

World number 41 Paraguay arrived off a penalty shootout win over Germany and sought another major upset. They lined up with five at the back, sat deep, and at times adopted a hard-edged, physical style that drew criticism as stereotypical South American gamesmanship.

Frustration showed when Mbappe became embroiled in a pushing exchange with Andres Cubas. Shortly afterward, Matias Galarza appeared to strike at the France captain away from the ball.

Despite controlling the game, France struggled to create clear chances and were limited largely to efforts from distance. Manu Kone saw one first-half shot deflect narrowly wide and another pushed over the bar by Orlando Gill soon after the interval.

Paraguay’s plan to irritate and contain France was working, but those tactics could only hold for so long. With Michael Olise and Ousmane Dembele finding little space, Deschamps replaced Bradley Barcola with Doue on the left wing just after the hour.

The change paid off quickly. Doue drove at a packed Paraguay defence and went to ground under contact from Diego Gomez. The Uzbek match official awarded a penalty following a video review. Dembele shielded the ball at the spot as Paraguay players crowded around before Mbappe calmly converted.

Having advanced via penalties in the previous round, Paraguay this time fell to a single spot kick.

It was not France’s finest performance, yet Mbappe nearly added a second in added time as the defending champions moved one step closer to their title ambitions. At the same stage in 1998, France needed a golden goal to eliminate Paraguay before going on to lift the World Cup.