In a fierce World Cup Round of 16 clash, France and Poland engaged in a fierce battle. France was the first to break the deadlock in the first half thanks to the brilliant performance of veteran striker Chiote. Then, Kilian Mbabi scored twice in a row and France successfully advanced to the last 8 with a score of 3-1. It is worth mentioning that Mbabi's goal count has surpassed that of "King" Pele, becoming the most scoring player under 24 years old in the history of the World Cup, with a total of 9 goals.
France returned to the starting lineup for this match after a significant rotation in their last match, where the starters were well rested. Chiote as the single arrow, with Kishavin, Oswin Dibili and Mbabi partnering the attack, Rabiot and Cao Yaveney form a defensive midfield. Poland's star players, on the other hand, stuck around to play after the thrilling match against Argentina, with Robert Ljwendowski and goalkeeper Stefan Szczesny leading the way.
In the first half, France played well and attacked fiercely. In the 29th minute, Oswin Dibili sent a cross from the right side of the field to Kioté, who grabbed a shot in front of the goal, but it went just wide. In the 35th minute, Mbabi sent a precise cross from the left, but Stjesny pounced in time. Poland had a great chance in the 38th minute when Schliński fired a powerful shot from the center of the field, which was valiantly blocked by Loris. Kaminski added a shot from the right side, but it was blocked by Wahlani, and France escaped with a narrow escape.
In the 44th minute, Kioté took a pass from Mbabi and deftly fired home to give France a 1-0 lead. Mbabi's tally of 52 goals broke the French scoring record held by Thierry Henry and, at 36 years and 65 days, became the oldest player to score in the knockout stages of the World Cup since Cameroonian striker Mina (38 years and 34 days) in 1990.
In the second half, France controlled the tempo of the game, looking for a good opportunity to extend the score. Poland, on the other hand, tried to equalize the score by attacking. The pace of the game gradually slowed down until the 74th minute, France launched a rapid counter-attack, Mbabi received Osvin Dibili's cross, near the door shot broke the goal, the score became 2-0. extra time, Mbabi once again demonstrated his amazing shooting skills, scored a "world wave", the current World Cup goals reached 5 goals, the top of the list of scorers, and surpassed the "King" Pele with 9 goals, becoming the top scorer. Mbabi has scored 5 goals in this year's World Cup, taking the top spot on the scorer's list, and surpassing "King of Balls" Pele with 9 goals, making him the highest goal scorer in the history of the World Cup for players under 24 years of age.
In the ninth minute of extra time, Poland had a penalty kick opportunity, which Robert Ljwendowski took, but shot high. He then got a chance to redirect the shot and managed to put the ball into the net, earning Poland a point. In the end, France eliminated Poland with a score of 3-1 and advanced to the last 8.
