France end Argentina dream

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Mbappe at the double in 7-goal thriller

KAZAN ARENA, Russia, June 30, (AFP): Teenage star Kylian Mbappe struck twice and earned another goal as France finally found their attacking edge to beat Lionel Messi’s Argentina 4-3 and move into the quarter-finals of the World Cup on Saturday.

Billed as Messi’s chance to reignite stuttering Argentina’s hopes, the thrilling last 16 clash in Kazan instead saw 19-year-old Paris Saint-Germain star Mbappe grab the limelight as he became the youngest player since Pele in 1958 to score two goals in a World Cup match.

Embattled Argentina coach Jorge Sampaoli had promised an “aggressive, attacking” approach from his side.

But his fears over the superior speed of the French strikers were quickly proven right when Mbappe sprinted from his own half until he was hauled down by Marcos Rojo.

Antoine Griezmann coolly converted the 13th minute penalty.

But Mbappe’s PSG teammate Angel Di Maria levelled with a 41st minute long-range stunner and the South Americans were back in what was proving a superb match.

Argentina took a 2-1 lead minutes after the restart when Gabriel Mercado clipped Messi’s low curling shot past Hugo Lloris, but that was Messi’s only real contribution in the match.

Defender Benjamin Pavard’s stunning half-volley levelled for France on 57 minutes and as Argentina lost hope, Mbappe struck in the 64th and 68th minute to seal France’s place in the last eight. The last time France lost a World Cup game after taking the lead was in 1982, against Poland.

Argentine had calls for first-half penalties too when the ball skimmed Samuel Umtiti’s arm, then when Messi tumbled as he was played into the area, were waved away. France had looked in control, but the stakes changed dramatically minutes before the interval.

Cristian Pavon, on the left flank, found Di Maria unmarked 25 yards out from goal and he unleashed a thunderbolt that flew past a diving Lloris and into the top right-hand corner.

Di Maria, one of several Albiceleste players criticised for underperfoming in their group games, made amends by setting up Argentina’s second.

He twisted and turned on the left side of the area to win a free kick, after Pavard’s tug, and when Banega’s free kick was cleared by Pogba it fell to Messi.

His curled shot looked innocuous, but Mercado stuck a foot out to wrong-footed Lloris. Minutes later, Les Bleus were level, Pavard matching Di Maria’s effort with a superbly-struck half-volley with the outside of his right boot that spun past Argentina ‘keeper Franco Armani after Blaise Matuidi’s wayward cross found the Stuttgart defender.

Despite a late consolation for Argentinan when Sergio Aguero headed Messi’s superb long cross past Lloris in stoppage time, Mbappe had already well and truly stolen the show. When Matuidi’s shot was blocked just after the hour, Mbappe was on hand to restore France’s lead with a low shot past Armani.

Four minutes later the teenager ran on to Olivier Giroud’s perfect pass on a France counter to drive it low past Armani and spark mass celebrations on the French bench. Man-of-the-match Mbappe brushed off comparisons with Brazil great Pele. “I’m very happy, and it’s flattering to be compared to a great player like Pele,” he said.

“But he’s in another category. Still, it’s great to join the list of players that have achieved such feats.”

Mbappe was born in the Paris suburbs in 1998, the year Les Bleus secured their first World Cup title under captain Didier Deschamps.

Deschamps — now manager — praised his team’s character to fight back from 2-1 down. “If I am a coach it is because I want to live this: a full stadium, highly experienced teams. Our team is much younger, but it’s there,” Deschamps said.

“We answered the call, we have a lot of character and it was not easy as we were leading, then there was an equaliser, then we were 2-1 behind, but we kept fighting. “There is an excellent mentality in this group and we did everything to go further. Since I am responsible for everything, particularly when it doesn’t go well I’m very proud.”

Meanwhile, FIFA have declared the video assistant referee system, introduced to the World Cup finals for the first time in Russia, a success.

Pierluigi Collina, the chairman of FIFA’s referees committee, said he was pleased with the impact of VAR but that it did not mean all decisions would be perfect.

FIFA said VAR crews conducted checks on 335 incidents during the group stage, helping achieve a 99.3 percent rate of correct decisions.

“VAR doesn’t mean perfection,” Collina said. “There could still be some wrong interpretation or even mistakes, so it’s not a perfection that can be reached having implemented VAR.”

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