When Just Fontaine swanned around Sweden … and the world

The French know a thing or two about producing tournament goalscorers all right. For a start there’s Kylian Mbappé, whose eight in Qatar last year was the biggest haul at a single World Cup for 20 years, since Ronaldo scored the same number in South Korea and Japan. No other player in the last half a century has come close. Then there’s Michel Platini, whose nine at Euro 84 remains an all-time record in that particular competition. No small achievement, either of those, and yet they both pale into insignificance when compared to the way Just Fontaine, who has died aged 89, swanned around Sweden at the 1958 World Cup.

Paraguay! Fontaine, playing as a lone striker, makes two defence-splitting runs, slamming home each time, then dinks his way around the keeper for a tap-in. Yugoslavia! Fontaine whips a low left-wing cross into the bottom right, then elegantly lobs the keeper. Scotland! Another romp down the middle ends with a forensic missile dispatched into the bottom left. He also hits the bar twice. Northern Ireland! An unstoppable header followed by a defender-and-keeper-confusing swivel and slot. Brazil! Around the keeper and do-se-do. West Germany! A tap-in, a spin and shoot, a long-range daisycutter tight into the corner, and finally an insouciant pass into the net, taken early from the edge of the box to flummox the keeper. Thirteen goals, all told, and France might have won the whole damn thing had that hoodlum Vavá not crocked Monsieur Robert Jonquet in the semi.

This guy knew what he was doing. Fontaine only played 20 times for France, yet contributed 30 goals, a scoring rate that borders on the outrageous, then crashes over that border and performs donuts on foreign soil. His last four matches for Les Bleus