On Tuesday (20) morning, France beat Greece 1-0 in Group B of the UEFA Europa League qualifiers. Kylian McBarbie scored a 12-yard field goal to seal the deal, and the 24-year-old striker scored a total of 54 goals for the club and the national team this season, which is comparable to that of Manchester City striker Ayn Rand, and the two of them have started a battle for the new-generation king of the ball in the empty space.
France's victory in this game was quite dangerous. In the 51st minute, striker Kevin Keshavan was kicked in the head by an opponent in the penalty area, and needed to be bandaged up by a medic, and the referee also called a 12-yard penalty. Kylian McBarbee's shot was parried by the goalkeeper, but since a Greek player had already entered the penalty area before he took the shot, the referee awarded a re-shot, and McBarbee did not drag his feet this time, and fired a powerful shot into the net for a 1-0 win, which helped France maintain its four-legged qualifying round victories without conceding a goal.
Kylian McBarbie's goal is also of special significance, as he has already scored 54 goals this season for both club and country, surpassing the late French star Fonteyn to become the most scored by a French player in a single season in the history of the country. According to Squawka's statistics, McBarbie and Aynin Chalainte will have the same total of 54 goals in all competitions in the 2022/23 season, and are regarded as the new generation of successors to the King of Soccer, following in the footsteps of Mays and Laurent Cronje, and are in the midst of a quiet battle.
