Kylian Mbappe is not used to falling short of an appearance in a men’s World Cup Final. In each of his first two World Cups with France, Mbappe played in the final on both occasions, with a win in 2018 and a runner-up finish in 2022. But after a dominant Spain team tore France up in a 2-0 victory in the World Cup semifinals on Tuesday, Mbappe’s French side will have to settle for a third-place finish, at best, for the first time.
Following the defeat, Kylian Mbappe made clear the disappointment the entire team feels after the elimination while speaking to M6. “Like everyone else, a lot of disappointment. It was a dream for us to reach the final, to give our country this chance to dream, to make history… Now it’s something we have to face with our heads held high,” Mbappe said.
“There’s an enormous amount of disappointment; I can’t quite put it into words. We’ll have to pick ourselves up, go on vacation, and move on. Soccer doesn’t wait for anyone. Other things will happen at club and international level.”
France and a match to forget
Kylian Mbappe stopped looking like Mbappe at the worst possible moment. The player who had governed the World Cup from start to finish, the leader of France and the big candidate to leave as the ultimate star of the tournament, disappeared against Spain.
Kylian Mbappe #10 of France.
Spain won with dominance, following a penalty goal by Mikel Oyarzabal, which was caused by Lamine Yamal, and a goal by Pedro Porro. Beforehand, however, people already had Mbappe penciled in as a finalist. Until that moment, the World Cup had been his. He led the race for the Golden Boot and already accumulated 20 goals in 20 World Cup matches, figures reserved strictly for the greatest names in history.
Luis de la Fuente’s team did not need individual man-marking. It closed down spaces, prevented transitions, and managed to ensure that the most decisive forward of the tournament always received the ball far from where he does damage. It was a tactical puzzle that Didier Deschamps, who will not continue as head coach, could not figure out.
The numbers behind an unprecedented blackout
The numbers explain what happened better than any adjective could. Mbappe completed the 90 minutes with just 34 touches, only seven inside the opponent’s box, and a 75% pass accuracy, while his offensive production was practically nonexistent.
He completed only one dribble out of six attempts (17%), won two out of 11 duels he contested (18%), created zero goal-scoring chances, finished with three losses of possession, fell offside three times, and failed to direct any of his three shots on target.
