France Narrowly Trails England in World Cup Showdown Thanks to Mbappé
Having been 0-4 down, France are now just one goal behind against England during Sunday’s third-place match at the 2026 World Cup.
Ultimately, there was not much at stake in this game – that is, for everyone except Kylian Mbappé.
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Heading into the match, the Frenchman was second in the Golden Boot race, tied with Messi on eight goals, and behind the Argentine on assists.
Mbappé, however, has now pulled France back into the game virtually on his own, all while making World Cup history.
His first goal of the day came just 2.5 minutes into the second half, popping up with a tidy first-touch finish on his weaker left foot. That meant he led the Golden Boot race in this tournament with nine.
After providing an assist for Bradley Barcola, Mbappé then scored his second of the match and his 10th of the tournament to make it 4-3.
The French superstar has now scored 22 goals in 22 World Cup games, putting him ahead of Messi as the top scorer in World Cup history. He is simply incredible!
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Prior to the match, Mbappé honoured departing manager Didier Deschamps with a heartfelt message on X, which read, in part, “You who gave us so much. We should have offered you a better ending, but we failed.”
But while it has far from been the ending he wanted, Mbappé looks poised to secure his second successive World Cup Golden Boot.