Kylian Mbappé Chasing World Cup Glory Against Paraguay
Kylian Mbappé walked off the pitch in Philadelphia with the match ball, another brace to his name and another World Cup record within touching distance. The numbers tell one story. His eyes told another.
He is chasing Lionel Messi, yes, but not in the way the statistics suggest.
Mbappé’s two goals in France’s 3-0 dismantling of Sweden in the round of 32 hauled him to 18 World Cup strikes in 18 games, one behind Messi’s all-time mark of 19. He now sits alongside the Argentine at the top of this tournament’s scoring chart with six. Any other forward might be consumed by the race.
He insists he is not.
“I think the goal, as I said, is to go as far as possible – to make it to July 19th and come back here,” he told reporters, pointing his focus squarely at the final in New York rather than the record books.
France looked every inch a contender again on Tuesday. Sweden were brushed aside with a ruthless, almost casual authority, Mbappé at the heart of it all. When he accelerates, France’s entire game snaps into a higher gear. Defenders backpedal. Midfielders suddenly have angles and space. The scoreline felt inevitable long before the third goal went in.
He knows what the goals mean historically, but he refuses to dress them up.
“We’re trying to win; we’re taking it one step at a time. Of course, the more goals you score, the higher you climb in the rankings – I’m not telling anyone anything new there,” he said. Then came the line that cut through the personal narrative.
“I’m also convinced that Leo is going to score more goals, so I don’t focus too much on that. I’m more focused on the opponents we might face and how close we’re getting to our goal: the final.”
Messi’s Argentina face Cape Verde in the last 32 on Friday, a mismatch on paper that could stretch the record further out. Mbappé shrugs at the thought. His horizon is Paraguay in the last 16 and nothing beyond that.
Paraguay’s wall awaits
France now head to Philadelphia again to face a Paraguay side that has already ripped up one script. Germany, four-time world champions, are gone – dragged into a penalty shootout by Paraguay’s deep, disciplined block and then dumped out.
Paraguay did not just defend. They entrenched. Lines tight, spaces denied, ambition sacrificed for survival. It worked. There is no reason to expect anything more expansive against Mbappé and company.
Les Bleus know it.
“I think we’ll keep working between now and the Paraguay match to see what we can improve, because there are still some sequences that aren't quite clear enough, there’s room for improvement,” Mbappé said. No triumphalism, just a nod to the standards inside this French squad.
“Still, I think it’s positive overall, and our ability to score goals means we always have the chance to take the lead in matches.”
That is the difference between a favourite and a champion at this stage: the ability to turn tight, tense knockout nights with one burst, one finish, one moment. France have that in abundance. Paraguay will try to smother it.
The stakes are obvious. Win, and France move into a quarter-final against either co-hosts Canada or a Morocco side that has already shown it can bloody European noses. Lose, and they join Germany and the Netherlands as cautionary tales in a World Cup suddenly full of ambushes.
Belgium’s reset, Senegal’s belief
On the other side of the bracket, Belgium arrive in the knockouts with a very different kind of pressure.
This is a team still haunted by the failure of 2022, when a golden generation limped out in the group stage, four years after finishing third in Russia. That scar tissue has not vanished, but the first step has been taken. Belgium are through, and this time as group winners.
Their 5-1 demolition of New Zealand on Friday night sealed top spot in Group G and, crucially, delivered what coach Rudi Garcia had demanded.
“We wanted to finish first in the group stage and we succeeded,” Garcia said in French. He did not pretend everything had been perfect. Belgium took one win and two draws from the group, steady rather than spectacular. “Of course we wanted to win more — we know the story of our World Cup so far. Now it is time for the knockout phase. Senegal is a big team. But, you have to beat them, too, if you want to go far in a World Cup.”
The message was blunt. This is where reputations are rebuilt or broken.
Senegal stand in the way on Wednesday, a side that finished third in Group I with three points and a plus-2 goal differential, but that headline hides the grind they endured. They emerged from one of the tournament’s toughest groups, sharing it with France and Erling Haaland’s Norway. That experience hardens a team.
Romelu Lukaku, who has seen enough shocks in his career, refused to play the favourite.
“We know it will be a tough match,” the striker said in French on Monday. “Senegal has a lot of top-level players, and the coach is, too. I think it’s 50-50. We really shouldn’t underestimate them.”
Within hours, the World Cup offered a stark reminder of what happens when anyone does. Germany fell to Paraguay on penalties. Morocco sent the Netherlands home at their earliest exit. European pedigree counted for nothing.
Belgium have been warned.
“It doesn’t matter who the favorite is,” forward Charles De Ketelaere said. “We have confidence and need to be sharp. Yesterday showed that it doesn’t matter if you are the favorite.”
Mane, Courtois and a battle of edges
Senegal arrive with Sadio Mané in full stride and five goals fresh in the memory after a 5-0 thrashing of Iraq. That result underlined their attacking threat but also disguised a concern at the back.
Goalkeeper Édouard Mendy, injured in the 3-2 loss to Norway, will not play, coach Pape Thiaw confirmed. The gloves pass again to Mory Diaw, who started and kept a clean sheet against Iraq.
“Mory had a great performance,” Thiaw said in French. “He kept a clean sheet and I think (as) the goalkeeper tomorrow, we hope that we’ll also come up with a clean sheet.”
Hope meets hard reality in the shape of Thibaut Courtois. Belgium’s goalkeeper has conceded just two goals in three games and remains one of the defining figures of any tournament he enters. Breaking down that back line, with Courtois behind it, will test Senegal’s composure as much as their finishing.
Thiaw, though, has seen enough this week to believe in an upset.
“It’s not because you finished top of your group that you’re not going to be knocked out in the next round,” he said. “That’s exactly what happened with the Netherlands. It’s another tournament starting. We are looking for the win tomorrow so that we can continue our journey.”
He is right about the reset. Group stages shape paths; they do not decide destinies.
Garcia, for his part, will have one more option in reserve. Center back Zeno Debast, yet to feature at this World Cup because of a left leg injury, is back in full training after an MRI at the weekend and sessions on Monday and Tuesday, knee strapped but moving freely.
“Zeno Debast is with the group, but tomorrow is still too soon,” Garcia said. “He is making progress, though. He still needs time to get fully fit, as was anticipated. I am very satisfied with the defenders we have already called upon.”
So Belgium go into Senegal with stability at the back, firepower up front and the ghosts of 2022 still lurking in the background. Senegal bring belief, form and the memory of Monday’s shocks as fuel.
France, meanwhile, march on with Mbappé sprinting towards history but staring only at July 19.
In a World Cup where favourites are falling and underdogs are biting, the question is no longer who looks strongest on paper. It is who can keep their nerve when the next giant starts to wobble.
