WITH A 2-1 WIN OVER DENMARK, MBAPPE LEADS FRANCE INTO THE ROUND OF 16
During a 2-1 victory over Denmark on Saturday evening, Kylian Mbappe stole the show with a brace and an outstanding performance to send France through to the round of 16 at the FIFA World Cup. There is no doubt that France will retain its title as world champions as their attacking ranks are stacked with quality. On matchday one, Olivier Giroud was the man of the moment for Les Bleus, but this time, it was Kylian Mbappe’s turn. As a young player with unbelievable speed and skill, he caused havoc on Denmark's defense throughout the evening, and he completely deserved his two goals, which were his 30th and 31st for his country - equaling the legendary Zinedine Zidane. With three goals, he is now tied for first place with Ecuador's Enner Valencia at the tournament.
As much as he may be prone to antics at the club level, he is a fantastic player and he is crucial to the team and its ambitions to win a second consecutive World Cup. Kasper Hjulmand's men fought hard, but Mbappe proved too much for them. Aside from securing their place in the knockout stages, Les Bleus also achieved a psychological victory. Since Euro 2000, France has not won a competitive match against Denmark in their previous four meetings.
From the beginning of the match, France was playing vigorously, and Denmark was having difficulty disrupting their play. It was Adrien Rabiot who opened Les Bleus' account against Australia in Qatar with the first real opportunity of the game. A cross from the right was floated in by Ousmane Dembele, and Rabiot's powerful header was brilliantly tipped away by Kasper Schmeichel. Despite the momentum of the reigning champions, Denmark had a great opportunity to take the lead when Andreas Cornelius and Jesper Lindstrom were gifted a quick break. Having played a one-two with Lindstrom, the Danish forward unleashed a powerful drive that flew just wide of Hugo Lloris' near post.
After Dembele picked Mbappe out in space on the edge of the penalty area, Mbappe missed a great opportunity himself. PSG's forward blazed his effort high over the crossbar as he got it all wrong. The most outstanding players on the pitch for Didier Deschamps' team were Kylian Mbappe, Ousmane Dembele, and Antoine Griezmann. The two creative stars contributed to any positive play displayed by France. Griezmann's great defensive work in the second half allowed Mbappe to score, but the striker could only sting Schmeichel's palms. Griezmann also had a great opportunity to score, but he was unable to direct his shot on target, as France exerted more pressure on the Danish defense. His error was quickly forgotten when Mbappe netted his 30th goal for Les Bleus after completing a fine passing move.
As it appeared that Denmark was doomed, the Danes came to life. Denmark won a corner following some magical play by Lindstrom on the right, and Andreas Christensen headed home the equalizer following a good flick-on by Joachim Andersen. Minutes later, De Rod-Hvide almost took the lead. Lindstrom was unmarked on the left, but his first-time effort was parried away by Lloris after a neat pull-back from the left. Toward the end of the game, both sides were pushing for a victory. Aurelien Tchouameni's diving header for France flew just inches past the near post, while Martin Braithwaite's close-range effort for Denmark went wide. With a run timed to perfection, Mbappe secured the three points for his team by sneaking in at the back post and firing past Schmeichel.
