Mbappe is the top scorer in the history of the World Cup playoffs

The French national team demonstrated its power at the MetLife Stadium in East Rutherford (New Jersey). This triumph was the biggest victory for the French in the World Cup playoffs since the legendary 1998 final against Brazil. However, the main event of the evening was the incredible individual achievement of Kylian Mbappe, who officially went down in history as the best scorer in the decisive stages of the tournament. It was the phenomenal performance of the 27-year-old forward of Real Madrid that became the key focus of the match. In the 45th minute, after a brilliant crossover, Mbappe scored a flawless individual strike to open the scoring. The goal was his ninth in a World Cup play-off, tying him with Brazilian legends Ronaldo and Leonidas for the most goals scored in a knockout match in the tournament's history. Subsequently, in the 74th minute, Kilian made a double, responding to a perfect pass from Michael Olise and skillfully hitting the far corner of the goal. These two goals not only cemented his status as the most dangerous player in the playoffs, but also brought him closer to the tournament's all-time record. Mbappe now has 18 goals in 18 World Cup matches. According to the overall indicator, he is only one goal behind Lionel Messi, who needed as many as 29 games for his result. На поточному турнірі француз відзначився вже 6 разів, зрівнявшись із Мессі у гонці за Золотою бутсою. "I'm perfectly aware of who I am, how I play, what I'll do, but it's not just about me. The whole team knows what needs to be done. Today, a new competition began. We played well, but we were timid. We could have performed better at the beginning," the record holder said after the match. Setting the record was accompanied by a touching moment. Immediately after his first goal, Mbappe ran to head coach Didier Deschamps. It was the manager's first game on the bench after missing the group game against Norway due to a trip to Europe on "He knows he will never be alone with us and we will support him," Mbappe said. Deschamps, in turn, bowed respectfully to his captain when he was substituted in the 85th minute. The match took place in extremely difficult weather conditions: sunny, high humidity, temperature of 32°C and poor air quality. During a hydration break, defender Lucas Dinh even had to douse himself with water from a spray bottle to cool off. Now France, who are aiming to reach the finals of the World Cup for the third time in a row, are preparing for the round of 16 match. The Tricolors will play Paraguay on Saturday in Philadelphia. The winner of this pair will advance to the quarterfinals, where they will face Canada or Morocco.