Scary part of Unceasing waves of French attacks with whom they come. The metrics of dominance and momentum shifts don’t apply to a team that has yet to get out of second gear at the World Cup. Le Bleus average three goals a game with Ousmane Dembele, Kylian Mbappe, Michael Olise and Bradley Barcola in front of four goals, while ranking 44th out of 48 teams in terms of run distance per game. Their victories have come with minimal effort.
Against Sweden, the quartet won a knockout game at the World Cup as more of a test drive than a high-stakes match that could have dire consequences.
18th minute: Barcola unleashes the first true French shot, which flies over the bar. But an opening run down the left, a sneak up the middle, followed by a deft shoulder drop to flummox two Swedish guards and a left hand that heralded what was to come for the rest of the match. Barcola is a piercing knife that cuts teams in half.
France’s Kylian Mbappe (10) scores a goal against Sweden during the World Cup Round of 32 soccer match Tuesday, June 30, 2026, in East Rutherford, N.J., near New York. (AP Photo/Peter David Josek)
19th minute: France had the ball in the net before the goal was ruled out for offside by half a body. In a congested midfield, Olis latches onto a misplaced pass and finds Mbappe in a microsecond. The French captain’s first few steps took him away from the Swedish backline. He has enough time to pull Reeves back a bit, compose himself and make France feel like their openers. But VAR wipes the slate clean.
31st minute: France post rattle. Jules Counde plays right-back for the French but has the freedom to move into the middle. Dembele slips a pass to Kaunde, who is well situated in the Swedish box. He drives the ball into the center of the penalty area to find Mbappe, whose low shot rattles the post.
34th minute: The post will replay after a few minutes. Olise lets us into his mind. Rabiot finds Barco in the box, but Sweden have a chance to clear their lines. But the ball curls up in the air and Ollis maneuvers himself on the edge of the box towards goal below him. Many players would bring the ball down and then shoot or pass. Alice goes for the ridiculous instead. An almost sideways bicycle kick, which connects with the shin but is directed towards the goal. But Sweden’s post again makes a save and denies what would have arguably hung in the World Cup gallery of great goals.
Finally…
44th minute: On the stroke of half time, the inevitable happened. It was a question of never, but when and Mbappe is the hero.
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As Dembele made a pass into the box with traffic in front, Mbappe slid the ball to his right and slotted past Victor Gyokares. Then Yassin Ayyari put a foot in and there were still Gustaf Lagerbilke and Zetterstrom to beat, but the French captain curled the ball into the far corner from a tight spot and the Swede, who had been in disarray throughout the first half, produced a body blow.
52nd minute: Barcola gets on the scoresheet, but it’s the hostage provider who rejoices. None of his five World Cup assists were assists. He takes the ball on a run towards goal, moves it to his left and centre, sliding the ball between Lagerbilke’s legs into the path of Barcola. The finish is rudimentary, the genius behind the pass superb.
Mbappe movement goal against Sweden
Brings back the PSG vibes pic.twitter.com/BTPnNlKLah— Football Clips (@mohkoshin) 1 July 2026
73rd minute: Ollis’ best assist of the game resulted in France’s third. Barcola, left, looks for his quarterback, who lets the ball slip past him to the right and moves a terror Swedish block toward the ball. He then stops it all – the box and the players in front – goes to the left, cuts and threads another needle. The influence of the hostage can be measured by how the Swedish block reacts to its every move. They immediately go into damage control but the London-born player still has his way. Mbappe, always in search of a goal, now found himself a provider in the name of Paul Pogba and converted his sixth goal of the tournament to draw level with Lionel Messi.
81st minute: Barcola tries to get his second game. He cuts in from the right and just as two Swedish defenders are afraid to release a shot, the PSG winger swipes their ankles from under them and drives the ball to the left. A subsequent poor touch prevented what could have been France’s fourth, but the relentless drive to breach Sweden’s backline that gave up years ago is a warning shot that every top team left at this World Cup will be watching anxiously.