France booked a place in the knockout stages of the Qatar 2022 FIFA World Cup after edging out Denmark. Argentina also recorded their first three points of the tournament with Lionel Messi inspiring the team to victory.
Meanwhile, Poland’s Robert Lewandowski found the back of the net for the first time in a FIFA World Cup tournament.
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Group C
Poland 2-0 Saudi Arabia
Robert Lewandowski scored his first ever World Cup goal as Poland recorded their first win at the ongoing World Cup.
The Polish side drew goalless with Mexico in their first match but proved too much to handle for the Saudi Arabians.
Saudi Arabia, the giant slayers from the first matchday, got everyone talking after their heroics against Argentina – a shocking 2-1 win. Following the historic victory, Saudi authorities declared three days of national public holiday in the Middle East country. The players were also promised a Rolls Royce each by Saudi crown prince Mohamed bin Salman.
After both sides looked lively in the opening exchanges, it was Poland who took the lead in the 39th minute through Napoli midfielder Piotr Zieliński following Lewandowski’s assist.
Al-Suqour Al-Khodhur had the chance to equalize just before halftime but 31-year-old winger Salem Al-Dawsari’s penalty was well saved by Wojciech Szczęsny, who also produced a top class save to deny the rebound.
With eight minutes to go, Lewandowski pounced on a terrible defensive error to score his first World Cup goal. The former Dortmund and Bayern Munich striker had missed a penalty kick in Poland’s first game against Mexico.
Argentina 2-0 Mexico
Following a disappointing start to life at the 2022 World Cup in Qatar, Argentina scored two second half goals to beat Mexico at the Lusail Stadium.
Lionel Messi was the catalyst behind the remarkable win, scoring one and providing the other. Following a drab goalless first forty-five, Albiceleste sprung to life with a pinpoint Messi shot that found its way past Mexico goalkeeper Guillermo Ochoa and into the back of the net three minutes past the hour mark.
Mexico probed intensely, searching for an equalizer but the defensive partnership of Lisandro Martínez and Nicolas Otamendi stood firm. The former, a replacement for Tottenham defender Cristian Romero who started the first game, was especially solid throughout.
With just three minutes to the end of normal time, 21-year-old Benfica central midfielder Enzo Fernández curled a fantastic bended shot into the net to seal the victory for the South Americans and restore hope of qualification from the group stage.
Poland lead Group C with four points, Argentina are second with three, while Saudi Arabia sit in third place with three points as well. Mexico are fourth after getting only one point from two games.
Group D
Tunisia 0-1 Australia
Australia shook off their 4-1 defeat to France on matchday one to narrowly defeat Tunisia. The North African side, still seeking a first goal at the Qatar 2022 FIFA World Cup, had more of the ball but failed to break the Australian defence.
Mitchell Duke’s 23rd minute goal was the difference between the two sides. Tunisia had more attempts on goal and shots on target. They had drawn 0-0 against Denmark in their first match and will need a big miracle if they are to scale through to the next round.
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France 2-1 Denmark
Attacking fluidity at its best, the France-Denmark game should be one of the best games so far at the Qatar 2022 FIFA World Cup. The interesting encounter was an action-packed one and we enjoyed it.
Kylian Mbappé once again proved just how important he is to Les Bleus. The PSG striker broke the deadlock in the 61st minute after connecting brilliantly with Theo Hernández.
Seven minutes later, Denmark levelled through former Chelsea defender Andreas Christensen following a corner kick. Manchester United midfielder Christian Eriksen’s brilliant corner kick found the head of 26-year-old Crystal Palace centre-back Joachim Andersen who headed into the ground only for the ball to be directed behind Hugo Lloris and into the net by Christensen.
Both teams continued to press decently with France missing couple brilliant chances, with Antoine Griezmann the main culprit. With five minutes of regulation time to go, Griezmann’s cross into the box met Mbappé who was able to direct the ball into the net, beating goalkeeper Kasper Schmeichel for the second time on the night.
The win now means France are the first team to qualify for the Round of 16 of the ongoing Qatar 2022 FIFA World Cup.
Injuries to Christopher Nkunku and Real Madrid striker Karim Benzema meant France will be missing two of the deadliest attackers in world football based on current form.
The French team already lost the services of 2018 World Cup-winning duo Paul Pogba and N’Golo Kante. Both players have been sidelined for months. These injuries have made quite a number of fans reduce their expectations from the French team but they have proven to be very brilliant so far.
Adrien Rabiot and Aurélien Tchouaméni, 22, were both outstanding and gave the Danish midfield a tough time. Both players even went close to scoring at different points in the game. Barcelona winger, Ousmane Dembélé also troubled the Danish defence with his dribbles and pace.
Dayot Upamecano and Raphael Varane did awesome defending throughout the match – the latter was replaced by Ibrahima Konate few minutes to the end of the game. It was an overall sensational and commendable performance by Didier Deschamps’ side.
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