France beat Paraguay to reach World Cup quarter-finals

France booked their place in the FIFA World Cup quarter-finals for the fourth consecutive tournament after defeating Paraguay 1-0 in a tense Round of 16 clash. Kylian Mbappé scored the only goal of the match to keep France’s hopes of winning the World Cup alive.

The match was played in extremely hot weather, with temperatures reaching around 38 degrees Celsius. Despite the challenging conditions, both teams battled hard throughout the game. Paraguay defended resolutely and frustrated France for much of the match. The South American side remained well organised and physical, making it difficult for the French attackers to find space.

The breakthrough finally came in the 70th minute when France were awarded a penalty after a VAR review confirmed that Paraguay’s Diego Gomez had tripped Kylian Mbappé inside the penalty area. Mbappé calmly converted the penalty, scoring his 19th career FIFA World Cup goal in his 19th World Cup appearance.

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The goal also took Mbappé’s tally to seven in the current tournament, drawing him level with Lionel Messi in the race for the Golden Boot. France protected their narrow lead during the closing stages as Paraguay searched for an equaliser but failed to create a clear scoring opportunity.

With the victory, France advanced to the quarter-finals, where they will face Morocco in another highly anticipated FIFA World Cup clash. French supporters celebrated an important victory, while Paraguay’s determined defensive performance ended in disappointment as their FIFA World Cup campaign came to a close.