Kylian Mbappé Chases World Cup Glory on July 19
Kylian Mbappé is hunting history, but he isn’t chasing a man. He’s chasing a date.
July 19. New York. A World Cup final.
The France forward moved to within one goal of Lionel Messi’s all-time World Cup record on Tuesday night, scoring twice as Les Bleus dismantled Sweden 3-0 in the round of 32. At 27, he now has 18 goals in 18 World Cup games, one shy of Messi’s 19, and sits level with the Argentine at the top of this tournament’s scoring chart on six.
The numbers are staggering. Mbappé shrugs at them.
“I think the goal, as I said, is to go as far as possible – to make it to (the final on) July 19th and come back here,” he told reporters, framing the chase in terms of trophies, not tallies.
He knows how the game works: more goals, more records. He also knows Messi is still playing.
“I’m also convinced that Leo is going to score more goals, so I don’t focus too much on that. I’m more focused on the opponents we might face and how close we’re getting to our goal: the final.”
Messi’s Argentina will be expected to ease past Cape Verde in the last 32 on Friday. France’s route looks more rugged. Next comes Paraguay in Philadelphia, a side that just sent Germany home and showed they are perfectly happy to suffer for 120 minutes if it leads to penalties.
Paraguay parked the bus, locked the doors and threw away the keys against the four-time world champions, then held their nerve in the shootout. Nobody expects them to suddenly open up against Mbappé and company.
Mbappé, for one, is not.
“I think we’ll keep working between now and the Paraguay match to see what we can improve, because there are still some sequences that aren't quite clear enough, there’s room for improvement,” he said. The message was clear: enjoy Sweden, but don’t be seduced by it.
“Still, I think it’s positive overall, and our ability to score goals means we always have the chance to take the lead in matches.”
France, Argentina, Belgium, England, the USA – the heavyweight names are still on the bracket, but this World Cup has already ripped up reputations. Germany are out. The Netherlands are out. Both fell to teams who refused to bow to history.
And nobody in the remaining field has missed that warning.
Belgium’s golden generation on borrowed time
Belgium know this story all too well. A bronze medal in 2018, a group-stage flop in 2022. Now, in what feels like the last stand for Kevin De Bruyne, Romelu Lukaku and the remnants of the so-called golden generation, they have at least taken the first step.
By winning Group G, capped by a 5-1 demolition of New Zealand on Friday, Belgium have already done better than in Qatar. One win, two draws, top spot secured. Box ticked.
Coach Rudi Garcia wanted that minimum. He got it. Now comes the real examination: Senegal in the knockout round on Wednesday.
“We wanted to finish first in the group stage and we succeeded,” Garcia said in French. “Of course we wanted to win more — we know the story of our World Cup so far. Now it is time for the knockout phase. Senegal is a big team. But, you have to beat them, too, if you want to go far in a World Cup.”
Senegal arrive from one of the toughest groups in the tournament, finishing third in Group I with three points and a plus-2 goal difference in a pool that contained France and Erling Haaland’s Norway. That’s not a soft landing; that’s a live threat.
“We know it will be a tough match,” Lukaku said in French. “Senegal has a lot of top-level players, and the coach is, too. I think it’s 50-50. We really shouldn’t underestimate them.”
The events of Monday night hammered that point home. Germany, four-time champions, were bundled out by Paraguay. Morocco sent the Netherlands packing at their earliest World Cup exit. No one is safe.
“It doesn’t matter who the favorite is,” Belgium forward Charles De Ketelaere said. “We have confidence and need to be sharp. Yesterday showed that it doesn’t matter if you are the favorite.”
Senegal believe they can be the next to spring a surprise. They have Sadio Mané leading the line and arrive on the back of a 5-0 thrashing of Iraq. Their concern lies at the other end.
Goalkeeper Édouard Mendy, injured in a 3-2 defeat to Norway in the group stage, will not play, coach Pape Thiaw confirmed. Mory Diaw, who started and kept a clean sheet against Iraq, is expected to continue.
“Mory had a great performance,” Thiaw said in French. “He kept a clean sheet and I think (as) the goalkeeper tomorrow, we hope that we’ll also come up with a clean sheet.”
Thiaw’s belief is grounded in the chaos of this round.
“It’s not because you finished top of your group that you’re not going to be knocked out in the next round,” he said. “That’s exactly what happened with the Netherlands. It’s another tournament starting. We are looking for the win tomorrow so that we can continue our journey.”
Belgium will at least have extra depth in reserve. Center back Zeno Debast, sidelined all summer with a left leg injury, is available again after returning to training on Monday and working with tape on his knee on Tuesday. Garcia, though, is not rushing him.
“Zeno Debast is with the group, but tomorrow is still too soon,” the coach said. “He is making progress, though. He still needs time to get fully fit, as was anticipated. I am very satisfied with the defenders we have already called upon.”
The light is dimming on this Belgian core. Senegal in Seattle will test just how much is left in the tank.
England walk the tightrope in Atlanta
England have watched Germany and the Netherlands fall and know exactly what’s at stake. On Wednesday, they face the Democratic Republic of Congo in Atlanta with a place in the last 16 on the line and a 60-year wait for a major trophy hanging over them.
Thomas Tuchel has no interest in playing down the pressure.
“I feel it is a privilege to be in these situations. I think we can just accept it, we are the favorites (against DR Congo),” the England coach said.
Then came the caution.
“The games so far in round of 32 speak a very clear language. It’s narrow, narrow margins.”
England’s hopes rest, as so often, on their headline acts. Jude Bellingham and Harry Kane carry the creative and goalscoring burden. Reece James, such an important outlet on the right, misses out through injury, stretching England’s defensive resources.
DR Congo arrive with nothing to lose and a squad that reflects a global search for talent. Of the 26 players, 20 were born outside the country, many in France. Yoane Wissa is a familiar face to England’s defenders from the Premier League. Aaron Wan-Bissaka and Axel Tuanzebe both came through England’s youth ranks before choosing to represent DR Congo.
Coach Sébastien Desabre knows the balance of expectation and has no desire to shift it.
“Our World Cup is already a success relative to our goals,” the Frenchman said. “The pressure is on the England team.”
England have seen what happens when favourites blink. They cannot afford to join Germany and the Netherlands on the wrong side of history.
A defining night for the USA
Across the continent, another football story is about to collide with a country’s sporting culture.
In a packed American sports calendar, football has had to fight for space. On Wednesday night in the San Francisco Bay Area, the USA’s clash with Bosnia-Herzegovina could change that conversation. Up to 30 million viewers are expected to tune in for a primetime knockout game, a stage the national team has rarely occupied with such fanfare.
Christian Pulisic and his teammates know what this could mean: the chance to deliver the nation’s first World Cup knockout win in almost 25 years, and to do it with the lights turned up to maximum.
“Everyone knows in the back of our minds what this could do for this country,” midfielder Gio Reyna said.
“We feel the country rallying around us. We see the momentum it's bringing to the sport in this country, just through the group stage. But we also understand if we make a nice run in this tournament, what it could really do for the sport.”
This is the kind of night that forges memories and converts skeptics. Win, and the sport’s foothold in America could deepen. Lose, and it becomes another “what if” in a long list.
France’s fire, Deschamps’ grief
Back in the here and now, nobody is playing with more swagger than France.
On Tuesday, Mbappé and his teammates produced a display that bordered on exhibition at times, slicing through Sweden with ease. The 3-0 scoreline flattered the beaten side; it barely captured the control and menace of France’s performance.
Mbappé’s two goals pushed him to six for the tournament, underlining a campaign that feels like a personal crusade and a national mission rolled into one.
After one of his strikes, the Real Madrid star sprinted not to the corner flag but straight to the bench, where he and his teammates embraced Didier Deschamps. The France coach is still mourning the death of his mother this month, and the gesture cut through the usual World Cup noise.
“I think that reflects the spirit of this group — it's part of our DNA. We are all together,” Mbappé told beIN Sports.
“We know the coach has been through a difficult experience; unfortunately, everyone goes through that at some point and it's very hard.”
It was a rare glimpse behind the armour of a squad that often looks untouchable. The football is ruthless; the bonds are real.
France now turn to Paraguay. Argentina turn to Cape Verde. Belgium brace for Senegal. England walk into a trap-laden tie with DR Congo. The USA step into the glare against Bosnia-Herzegovina.
And in the middle of it all, another storyline quietly advanced: Erling Haaland’s Norway finally reached the last 16 for the first time, the striker poking home the decisive goal in a 2-1 win over Ivory Coast.
The giants are wobbling, the challengers are rising, and the margins are shrinking by the day. In a World Cup that has already shredded assumptions, who dares to believe that being favourite still means anything at all?
