FIFA World Cup 2026: Mbappe double fires France to opening win over Senegal

Kylian Mbappe scored twice as France launched their bid for a third World Cup crown with a 31 victory over Senegal in Group I on TuesdayReal Madrid star Mbappe took his career World Cup goals tally to 14 ndash just two behind alltime leader Miroslav Klose ndash and Bradley Barcola was also on target as Les Bleus secured all three points for Didier Deschamps sideMbappe darted across the penalty area to convert a brilliant Michael Olise pass on 66 minutes to break the deadlock in a contest in which France struggled badly in the first half but came to life after the breakBarcola of Paris SaintGermain then came off the bench to get the second late on before his club colleague Ibrahim Mbaye pulled one back in stoppage time for SenegalBut Mbappe saved the best for last as he blasted in from long range in the 96th minute to seal the win and become Frances alltime top scorer with 58 goalsThe decision by coach Didier Deschamps to move Olise infield from the right wing was crucial in swinging the game the way of the twotime World Cup winnersBut it is Mbappe who grabbed the spotlight in what turned out to be a memorable 99th appearance for his countryMbappe renewed his extraordinary love affair with the World Cup in which he scored in the 2018 final as France won and netted a stunning hattrick in their defeat on penalties to Argentina in the 2022 final in QatarThe 27yearold Real Madrid strikers double took him past Peles 12 and overtook the 13 of Lionel Messi and fellow Frenchman Just FontaineHe is now level with Gerd Mueller in the overall list with only Klose and the Brazilian Ronaldo 15 still ahead of himFrance one of the pretournament favourites will be expected to build on this to ease into the last 32 with outsiders Iraq up next before a meeting with Erling Haalands NorwayDeschamps in his last tournament before he steps down after 14 years in charge has been wary of overconfidence in his talented squadOpponents Senegal served as a warning from the past ndash France went into the 2002 World Cup as holders and favourites but lost 10 to the Lions of Teranga in their opening game and never recovered going out in the group stage without scoring a goalOlise outstandingSenegal showed how strong they are before a packed house of 80545 in a game played in bright sunshine with the skyscrapers of Manhattan in the distanceA team led by veteran forward Sadio Mane and featuring four starters born in France were playing their first competitive game since the Africa Cup of Nations final in Morocco in JanuaryPape Thiaws side won that in extra time but were later stripped of their title for a walkoff protest by several players during the match Their appeal into that is ongoingThey were the better team in the first half as Nicolas Jackson almost scored on the break on 25 minutes when he broke away and hit the post before the ball ricocheted off goalkeeper Mike Maignan and went just wideIsmaila Sarr then put a glorious chance over the bar in firsthalf stoppage time and Senegal were to regret thatOlise and Ousmane Dembele switched positions at the interval with the reigning Ballon drsquoOr moving right and leaving the area through the middle behind Mbappe to the Bayern manSuddenly France came to life with Olise being denied by Edouard Mendy and then setting up Mbappe for a chance that was savedFrance thought they had a penalty on the hour mark when Mbappe went down under a Mane challenge but referee Alireza Faghani opted not to award a spotkick after a reviewIt didnt matter as Olise continued to tear apart the opposition and slipped in Mbappe for the openerIt was a superb goal and France struck again when Adrien Rabiot released substitute Barcola to run through and scoreMbaye got one back on 95 minutes but Mbappe had the last wordThis story has been sourced from a third party syndicated feed agencies Midday accepts no responsibility or liability for its dependability trustworthiness reliability and data of the text Midday managementmiddaycom reserves the sole right to alter delete or remove without notice the content in its absolute discretion for any reason whatsoever