East Rutherford: Kylian Mbappe put France ahead with a brilliant crossover step in the 45th minute and then added a second-half goal to break a World Cup knockout round scoring record, and Les Bleus beat Sweden 3-0 Tuesday to set up a round of 16 match against Paraguay.
Bradley Barcola added a 53rd-minute goal for France, and Mbappe capped the scoring in the 74th minute for his third two-goal game in four matches. His six goals tied Argentina forward Lionel Messi for the tournament lead and gave him 18 in his World Cup career, one shy of Messi’s record.
Mbappe’s 10 knockout round goals are two more than the previous high by Brazilian greats Leonidas and Ronaldo. France coach Didier Deschamps bowed when his star came to the bench after he was substituted in the 85th minute.
France, the World Cup runner-up four years ago and a tournament favourite this time, has outscored opponents 13-2, with Michael Olise assisting on five goals.
On a brutally hot afternoon at MeLife Stadium, site of the World Cup final in July 19, France outshot Sweden 25-7, including 15-3 in the first half.
Seeking to reach its third straight World Cup final, France plays Paraguay July 4 in Philadelphia, and the winner advances to a quarterfinal against Canada or Morocco five days later at Foxborough, Massachusetts.
It was 90 degrees Fahrenheit (32 degrees Celsius), sunny and humid at the 5 p.m. kickoff with poor air quality. During the first half hydration break, France defender Lucas Digne let himself be doused by a sprinkler.
Mbappe hit a post in the 32nd minute, raising both hands in disgust, and France nearly went ahead four minutes later on Olise’s spectacular bicycle kick from just inside the penalty area, which also clanked off a post.
In the first World Cup meeting between the nations, Mbappe scored after goalkeeper Jacob Widell Zetterstrom tipped Olise’s shot just outside the post.
Olise played a short corner kick to Ousmane Dembele, who passed to Mbappe near the byline. Mbappe took a crossover step to get around Viktor Gyokeres and from just outside the 6-yard box sent a diagonal shot inside the far post.
Mbappe ran up the center of the field to celebrate his 61st international goal, colliding with Dembele, and jogged to the bench to hug Deschamps, who returned for the match after going to France for his mother’s funeral.
Gustaf Lagerbielke lost the ball ahead of France’s second goal. Aurelien Tchouameni passed to Olise, who nutmegged Lagerbielke, and Barcola took a centering touch and sent the ball past Zetterstrom’s outstretched right hand.
Mbappe entertained the crowd with a backheel pass to Barcola in the buildup to France’s third goal. Barcola passed to Olise, who passed to Mbappe as the star sprinted into the penalty area. He steadied the ball with a touch and fired the ball inside the far post.
A majority of fans wore France’s blue, with a pocket in Sweden’s yellow at one end. A crowd of 80,663 raised the record total for the expanded 104-match tournament above 5 million.
