FRANCE'S OLIVIER GIROUD TIED THIERRY HENRY'S ALL-TIME SCORING RECORD

A record-breaking opening goal for Olivier Giroud kicks off the World Cup. France defeated Australia 4-1 with the help of AC Milan striker Olivier Giroud, who tied Thierry Henry's record of 51 goals for the national team. It was a game with plenty of taste, and Kylian Mbappe was also there to impress. The world champions got off to a slow start, with Craig Goodwin catching them cold inside nine minutes of the match. This opportunity came about as a result of Harry Souttar's cross-field ball to the fleet-footed Mathew Leckie. A silky pass from the Melbourne City man for Goodwin left Lucas Hernadez infirm, while his cross fell to Goodwin, who slotted the ball into the net. In the aftermath of Lucas needing medical attention, his brother Theo was brought in to replace him. The start of the tournament for France was nothing short of a nightmare.

During the first half, Mitchell Duke missed a chance to score after Hernandez's sloppiness allowed him to avoid a penalty. But France was soon in control. In order to make amends for his mistake, Hernandez used a pinpoint cross to cross the ball in and Adrien Rabiot headed it home. During the Russia 2018 tournament, the midfielder had refused to be on the standby list, but he did lead France's scoring in the 2022 tournament, scoring the first goal. In the span of fewer than five minutes, Rabiot turned into a creator, as France hit the ground running.

After pressing high on the Juventus player, Kylian Mbappe kissed the loose ball in his direction as he prepared to enter the field. It was a square pass to Olivier Giroud that led to Giroud scoring his 50th goal for the French National Team. The danger France can boast about is its ability to turn nothing into something with an incredible amount of efficiency. It was not long before Mbappe discovered that this kind of efficiency eluded him. The ball was played beautifully by Antoine Griezmann from the right channel after he had just shot narrowly wide. From close range, Mbappe somehow managed to appear as though it was sitting up perfectly for him to strike. There is no denying that even the best of the best are human after all. At the stroke of halftime, Jackson Irvine almost made him regret his decision, hitting the post with a header at the end of the half.

As the game progressed into the second half, France took the lead. Having pulled back for Tchouameni, Hernandez blocked his effort. A beautiful cross from the fullback was then delivered to Giroud, who attempted a well-executed bicycle kick that went wide of the goal. Achieving the record of goals that Thierry Henry has scored for the French national team would have been quite a feat if it had been accomplished by him. Aziz Behich pulled off a fantastic save when he pulled back to Griezmann, whose effort was cleared off the line by the defender. The creativity of the defender once again came to the fore. As many had predicted, this was going to be the year of Mbappe, and he made his first inroads into that title with his header in France's third goal. There was no doubt that Ousmane Dembele's cross was pitch-perfect, and Mbappe made it look as if it was an easy nod finish. As of this point, it had been great floodgates opening up, and the identity of the next scorer would make history in the making of the match. With the help of Mbappe's cross, Giroud caused a monster header to be pushed home to score his 51st goal for the country.

With this record, he is tied with Henry as the joint-highest goal scorer for the national team along with his colleagues. This is his first time scoring in a major final since World Cup 2014, but every member of 2018, World Cup-winning squad valued his contribution to making that triumph a historic one for the country. It was obvious from the emotionally charged celebrations that took place here at the end of the season.

Here in France, there was a whole lot to celebrate and there was a lot to enjoy. Despite a build-up in which speculation has swirled about the curse of the holders, the opening match saw the holders emerge with a trove of positives-with a record-breaking night for Giroud, a revived Rabiot, and the sheer majesty of Mbappe. The first games of the World Cup are not the ones that decide the winner. Nevertheless, statements are made, and that is exactly what France has done in this case.

By Rashmi Goel