FIFA 2026: France Thrash Senegal In Opening Match

 

France started their 2026 FIFA World Cup on a perfect note, with a 3-1 win against Senegal, and Kylian Mbappe scored a brace to bring his goal tally in the World Cup to 14. 

Ahead of the match, Senegal held the head-to-head lead over France in the FIFA World Cup, following their 1-0 win in the 2002 edition. At the same time, it was Senegal's FIFA World Cup debut, and it finished the group stage in second behind Denmark. In attendance during the match was Arsenal's former head coach, Arsene Wenger. 

After a goalless first half, Mbappe broke the deadlock, finishing off Michael Olise's assist by side-footing the ball past Edouard Mendy. The lead doubled when Rabiot's through pass set Bradley Barcola off on a counter. The striker held off a challenge from Koulibaly nd lobbed the ball over on-rushing Mendy in the 82nd minute. 

As the game advanced to injury time, both sides scored a goal apiece in a minute. Ndiaye played in Ibrahim Mbaye, who broke into the box and drilled a shot into the top corner of the left post. The next moment saw Mbappe drill a 30-yard shot into the top of the post in the 95th minute.

The Victory put France at the top of Group 1. With 14 goals, Mbappe is France's all-time biggest scorer in the FIFA World Cup and has surpassed Giroud. France will face Iraq in the next match, while Senegal will take on Norway. 

Overview 

Senegal had the upper hand for the first 10 minutes, and Mane was a standout, influencing the attack. In the first quarter of the game, France struggled to establish control in the midfield, and Mbappe faced strong resistance from Koulibaly. Despite France slowing the pace and having possession, Senegal revamped the attack through Jackson and Sarr at every opportunity. 

Despite the setbacks faced in the first half, France came out stronger in the second half as Senegal began to fatigue, costing the African side dearly. Senegal had first dodged a penalty for a tackle on Mbappe inside the box. The striker later seized the same flank to score the equaliser. 

Chances and Defense

Senegal came closest to taking the lead in the first five minutes when Sarr cut through the midfield and advanced into the box before he was intercepted by Upamecano from making an attempt at the goal. Nicolas Jackson came close to taking the lead for the second when Diouf inspired a counter, and he darted into the box, making an attempt that beat Maignam to clip the bottom of the right post.

Meanwhile, France have not come that close in the opponents' half, and Senegal's best chance was on the brink of halftime, when Sarr wasted Mane's assist in front of the goal. The second half was different for France, which had the most shots on target of the half. Their first two goal were their best chances of the second half. However, the winning goal was a masterclass from Mbappe.