Paris St Germain Les Bleus Karim Benzema Olivier Giroud Qatar France Croatia Denmark Australia Tunisia cup as Paris St Germain Les Bleus Karim Benzema Olivier Giroud Qatar France Croatia Denmark Australia Tunisia

France need best version of Mbappe as tough World Cup campaign looms

channelnewsasia.com

PARIS : Kylian Mbappe loves nothing more than carrying the weight of a team on his shoulders and there is evidence he will need to do just that when France start the defence of their World Cup title.The Paris St Germain forward, who became the second youngest player after Pele to score twice in a World Cup final in France's 4-2 win against Croatia, will have to deal with huge expectations.His self-proclaimed drive to become the greatest will be put to the test after an under-par European Championship campaign in 2021 and in a team that is not as strong as four years ago.With a defence that needs constant readjustments and has shown signs of nerves lately, and in the absence of pivotal midfielder N'Golo Kante, who is out injured, Les Bleus will need Mbappe at his very best and his partnership with Ballon d'Or winner Karim Benzema to finally produce more than a few sparks.In the absence of the injured Benzema in the last couple of games, Mbappe has enjoyed being fielded alongside 36-year-old Olivier Giroud, whose willingness to play as a lone striker helps Mbappe find the space he craves."I have much more freedom here (than at PSG).

The coach knows that there is a number nine like Olivier who occupies the defences. I can wander around, go into space, ask for balls," said Mbappe, who has denied asking to leave PSG amid talk that he is unhappy being played as a centre-forward in Ligue 1.The speculation, however, has made the headlines and the 23-year-old has been the centre of attention on and off the field.Mbappe's capacity to solely focus on his performances on the pitch might determine France's fate in Qatar, where they face Australia, Denmark and Tunisia in Group D.Mbappe has shown no sign of slowing down in his

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France head coach Didier Deschamps has backed Kylian Mbappe to shine at the World Cup, labelling it "his competition" after the forward excelled in a comeback win over Australia. A number of injures rocked the France squad heading into the finals and they were stunned as Craig Goodwin opened the scoring after nine minutes before rallying to record a 4-1 win. Olivier Giroud scored twice to equal Thierry Henry's all-time record of 51 goals for France, while Adrien Rabiot and Mbappe were also on the scoresheet for the reigning world champions at Al Janoub Stadium. Mbappe, who hit four goals en route to helping France to win the 2018 World Cup, was named man of the match following the victory as Deschamps hailed the Paris St Germain ace. "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," he said. "I knew that he was going to be ready for this World Cup, it is his competition, he knows how to make the difference. "But 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."
Olivier Giroud equalled France's all-time goalscoring record as his brace helped the holders recover from an early scare to make light work of Australia and begin their World Cup defence with a comfortable victory.
Olivier Giroud joined Thierry Henry as France's all-time leading goalscorer with a brace as holders France recovered to beat Australia 4-1 and get their defence of the World Cup off to a winning start Tuesday.
DOHA: Olivier Giroud joined Thierry Henry as France’s all-time leading goalscorer with a brace as holders France recovered to beat Australia 4-1 and get their defense of the World Cup off to a winning start Tuesday. Australia took a shock lead at Al Janoub Stadium with the game just nine minutes old when Craig Goodwin scored. France, whose build-up to the tournament was marred by injuries, saw left-back Lucas Hernandez come off hurt in the move that led to that goal.

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