Didier Deschamps hailed Kylian Mbappe after his stellar display for France against Australia and claimed that the “World Cup is his competition”.
France outplayed Australia 4-1Mbappe scored one and created anotherOut to repeat 2018 heroics
WHAT HAPPENED? The Paris Saint-Germain forward was at his brilliant best against Australia as Les Bleus started their World Cup campaign with a thumping 4-1 victory. He scored the third goal for France with a fine header from Ousmane Dembele’s cross that crashed in off the post. He also set up Olivier Giroud to score his second goal in the 71st minute, which saw the striker equal Thierry Henry’s record of 51 goals to become France’s joint-highest-scorer. Deschamps was elated with Mbappe’s heroics and claimed that he is made for the World Cup stage.
WHAT THEY SAID: “Kylian of course has been one of the best players in the world for some time now and he is feeling very confident, you can see that in the way he is playing. I knew that he was going to be ready for this World Cup, it is his competition, he knows how to make a difference,” he told reporters after the win.
“He is part of a team and he has always been able to play as part of a team even though he is an individual, flair player as well. So that is great for us. I have got a lot of attackers, but Kylian is of course an outstanding one.”
THE BIGGER PICTURE: Mbappe played a starring role in France’s run to glory at the last World Cup in Russia, scoring four goals, including one in their final win over Croatia. He will hope to have a similar impact this time around as Deschamps’ side seek to become just the third nation in history to successfully defend a global crown.
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DID YOU KNOW? Mbappe became the youngest player to reach five World Cup goals for France (23y 337d), while he’s now netted 12 goals in his last 11 appearances for Les Bleus across all competitions.
WHAT NEXT FOR MBAPPE? The forward will look to continue his scintillating form when France take on Denmark on Saturday and Tunisia on the final group stage matchday on November 30.
