Mbappe’s brace steers France to World Cup quarterfinal stage

By Leobert Julian A. de la Peña

Kylian Mbappe’s terrific scoring performance spearheads France’s 2022 World Cup quarterfinal qualification after romping Poland, 3-1, last December 4, 2022, held at the Al-Thumama Stadium in Doha, Qatar.

The exciting 23-year-old star playing for Paris Saint-Germain (PSG) fired the game-sealing goals that prevented any comeback attempts from Poland.

Veteran Olivier Giroud drew first blood for France after finding the back of the net with only a minute remaining before the first half was about to close.

It was no other than Mbappe who delivered the sweet assist to Giroud who just scored his 52^nd international goal, passing Thierry Henry as France’s all-time leader in scoring.

As the second half began, Poland showed better defensive adjustments that kept France stagnant but 19 minutes after, Mbappe scored his first goal of the game after firing a strong right kick that kissed the left top corner of the opposition’s goalpost.

The goal gave France a comfortable 2-0 lead which also caused pandemonium at the Al-Thumama Stadium when the Les Bleus fans exploded in joy after the Mbappe conversion.

Mbappe didn’t stop and concluded his masterful outing after completing his brace in the first minute of the extension period.

After receiving the ball inside the penalty area, Mbappe took one dribble to his right side to gain more space and fired a quick bomb for his brace against Poland.

Robert Lewandowski gave Poland its first goal of the match after being rewarded with a free kick but wasn’t enough to pull off a miraculous win against France.

With the impressive win, Les Bleus will then next face England in the quarterfinals on Sunday, December 11, 2022.