👀 Madness in the first half! England run riot against France | OneFootball

So what on earth has suddenly happened to France? That was already a question you pretty much had to ask in the semifinal against Spain, and on this late Saturday evening, it’s continuing seamlessly.

In coach Didier Deschamps’ latest match, the French were already trailing 0–2 early on against Tuchel’s England. Declan Rice scored his first World Cup goal as early as the 3rd minute, finding the right corner from around 18 meters out.

Things kept rolling, and the ball quickly ended up in the French net again — but that goal was ruled out for offside.

Ezri Konsa’s goal after 18 minutes, however, did count, leaving Deschamps’ team two goals down early and so far seemingly without any real answer. And that despite the fact that there currently seems to be far more unrest around the Three Lions than in the France camp.

Accordingly, Thomas Tuchel reacted to the opening goal with plenty of joy. 

It got even crazier just under ten minutes before halftime: after a very quick and very well-played transition, the French couldn’t clear the ball and at times looked clumsy in defense. Bukayo Saka took advantage and made it 3–0 in the 37th minute. And just when you think it can’t get any worse... in first-half stoppage time, Saka grabbed his brace and made it 4–0 (!!!). 

The fact is: if France keep playing like this, they can forget about a consolatory third place. Even superstar Mbappé, who unlike other top stars on both sides is not being rested, would probably have to kiss the Golden Boot goodbye. At the moment, he is joint top with Messi — both attacking giants already have eight goals to their name.

However, the Frenchman has only this one game left to add to his tally, while Messi can add more in tomorrow’s final.

So right now, it doesn’t look at all as though France will be able to pull themselves together in this very entertaining match, affectionately dubbed by many as the “pineapple game.” If it stays this way, it would be an absolute humiliation for France and at least a somewhat conciliatory end to the World Cup. 

Shortly after the restart, however, superstar Mbappé at least took the first step toward a comeback, scoring his ninth goal of the tournament to “cut” the deficit to 1–4, and Barcola soon added the 2–4. Both teams looked transformed after the halftime break — France in a positive way, England in an absolutely negative one. 

This article was translated into English by Artificial Intelligence. You can read the original version in 🇩🇪 here.

📸 CHANDAN KHANNA - AFP or licensors