France ekes past Paraguay and everything else to know from Saturday’s World Cup matches
By Patrick Sung Cuadrado, CNN
(CNN) — On the first day of Round of 16 action, we saw valiant efforts, fantastic goals and a real grind-it-out battle of attrition.
In the second match of the day, France eked past Paraguay, with the South Americans providing a tough test for one of the tournament favorites. In the day’s early fixture, Morocco defeated World Cup co-host Canada in Houston to seal a ticket to the quarterfinals.
Here’s everything to know about Saturday’s Round of 16 matches:
France pips Paraguay to make quarterfinals
In a roasting hot Philadelphia, France beat Paraguay 1-0 to progress to the quarterfinals against Morocco in Foxborough’s Gillette Stadium on July 9.
A converted penalty from Kylian Mbappé pushed Les Bleus into the quarterfinals for the fourth World Cup in a row and kept France on track for a third star above its crest.
With the temperature sitting at around 100 degrees Fahrenheit at Lincoln Financial Field when the ball was kicked off, you could forgive the players for taking a foot off the gas and feeling things out before pushing the matter more in the second half, but that was the last thing on their minds.
From the get-go, Les Bleus – including, at one point, the entire squad except for goalkeeper Mike Maignan – were in the Paraguay half, searching for an opener as La Albirroja defended valiantly. Proof of the dominance was France’s possession stat of 89% after five minutes of play.
But the constant attacking hadn’t paid off by the 20-minute mark, with Paraguay still defending well and France being just slightly off kilter with its passing in the final third of the pitch.
When the, for once, much-needed hydration break arrived, it was a chance for everyone in the stands and the players to grab a drink, France manager Didier Deschamps to yell at his team to be more incisive and Paraguay boss Gustavo Alfaro to tell his men, “Keep it up.”
The restart brought a bit more Paraguay urgency in attack, but things soon returned to normal with Les Bleus pushing up the pitch almost constantly.
The first partial opportunity of the match came in the 32nd minute when Ousmane Dembele provided a brilliant cross from the right into the box for Kylian Mbappé, but Diego Gómez appeared to slightly nudge the Real Madrid superstar, throwing him off balance and failing to make contact with the lofted ball.
A bit of a scuffle broke out in the 34th minute when Andrés Cubas fouled Mbappé and the Frenchman pushed him in retaliation, revealing France’s frustrations at failing to break down the South American defense. The resulting free kick provided a bit of intrigue as it was deflected and bounced around the box before being cleared by the Paraguayan defense.
As the halftime whistle blew, fans surely would have been thanking the gods for the respite, not from the heat, but rather the lack of any substantive action.
While France had over 80% possession in the first half, neither team had a shot on target and the state of play gave the impression that things were playing into Paraguay’s hands heading into the next 45 minutes.
As the second half kicked off, the pace picked up a bit with France having some good passages of play before Mbappé had a golden opportunity to break the deadlock.
France keeper Maignan caught the ball in the box in the 52nd minute and launched it downfield to a blitzing Mbappé, who controlled the ball but held onto it too long, so Paraguay’s defense had a chance to knock it away.
Les Bleus kept the pressure up and it nearly paid off again in the 55th with Manu Koné launching a rocket from deep, forcing a great, stretching save from Paraguay keeper Orlando Gill.
Finally, the defensive dam broke with referee Ilgiz Tantashev whistling for a penalty on Désiré Doué after a VAR review. Mbappé stepped up in the 70th minute and duly converted for his seventh goal of the tournament – overtaking Lionel Messi in the Golden Boot race due to his assist total.
The remainder of the match played out much the same as the rest with Paraguay playing a brusque style of physical soccer, which at times flirted with unsportsmanlike play that went unpunished by the referee.
The match opened up slightly before the 90th minute as Paraguay searched for the equalizer to send it to extra time and France looked for the coup de grâce.
Mbappé almost sealed the deal in the 97th minute, firing two powerful shots at the Albirroja goal, but Paraguay keeper Gill did incredibly well to stop both efforts.
Despite the 10 added on minutes and the frantic finish, the scoreline remained as it was and Les Bleus continued their march in this World Cup.
Morocco becomes 1st team into quarters with win over Canada
Morocco beat Canada 3-0 in Houston on Saturday to become the first team at the World Cup to progress to the quarterfinals.
Two goals from Azzedine Ounahi in the 50th and 82nd minutes and one from Soufiane Rahimi at the death made the difference for the Atlas Lions, who go on to play France on Thursday.
With the win, Morocco continues its great form at major tournaments, having made the 2022 World Cup semifinals and being – controversially – named African champion earlier this year.
To many, the result would seem a bit unfair to Canada as it seemed to be holding the reins for much of the contest, though as many aficionados of the Beautiful Game can attest, domination of a game – but failing to convert your chances – can sometimes result in the most painful of losses.
Despite star Alphonso Davies starting the match on the bench, Canada began the game brightly, pressing Morocco very successfully and threatening its goal frequently throughout the first quarter of the match.
Canada’s Tani Oluwaseyi had a great chance to take an early lead in the 11th minute after Les Rouges forced a turnover through a high press and the Villarreal forward produced a great turn to go through on goal, but his shot was fantastically saved by Morocco’s Yassine Bounou.
Making matters worse for the Atlas Lions, star midfielder Ismael Saibari – who recently signed a deal to join European giant Bayern Munich – left the pitch injured in the 23rd minute with what appeared to be a hamstring injury.
The hydration break brought some respite for Morocco and it produced its first attempt of the match in the 29th minute though Soufiane Rahimi’s shot was easily saved by Maxime Crepeau.
The match rhythm stayed the same until the 39th minute when Achraf Hakimi pushed Canada’s Richie Laryea in the back following a failed Morocco attack, sparking a bit of a tussle which resulted in yellow cards from referee Michael Oliver for both players involved.
The incident seemed to spark a bit of life into Morocco as its best passages of play happened afterwards, with Canada seeming to lose a step after starting so well. Slightly before halftime though, Bilal El Khannouss was cautioned, becoming the fourth Moroccan player – and sixth overall in the match – to be shown a yellow in the first half.
The second half began much as the first period ended with Canada in control and Morocco seeming aimless, but things changed almost in an instant.
Against the run of play, the Atlas Lions won a free kick near the corner of the box after Luc De Fougerolles was booked for a cynical challenge. Hakimi took the resultant free kick, playing it to Ounahi in front of the box, and the midfielder curled the ball into the bottom right corner to make it 1-0.
The match opened up after the goal and Morocco began to assert itself, though Canada continued its efforts to look for a goal.
Les Rouges called for a penalty after Tajon Buchanan was taken down in the Moroccan box by Redouane Halhal, but the assistant referee raised his flag for offside, negating any potential controversy that could have ensued with referee Oliver’s decision.
It was much of the same until the 76th minute when Stephen Eustáquio was pulled down just outside of the box, giving Canada a free kick on the edge of the area, but Jonathan David sent his effort sailing over the crossbar.
Les Rouges kept pushing for the equalizer though, as Buchanan shot a swerving and dipping effort from distance, forcing a good save from Bounou.
But Morocco put the game away in the 82nd minute on an impressive counterattack. Real Madrid attacker Brahim Díaz went into the right side of the box, dragging two defenders with him before laying the ball back to Ounahi to clinically score his brace.
The final score was almost padded three minutes later as Rahimi’s header on the break clanged down off the crossbar, but stopped just short of crossing the goal line.
But Morocco eventually got its third of the night with Rahimi shooting across goal past Crepeau to put a flourish on the Atlas Lions’ performance.
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