Senegal suffered a first-round defeat against France in the World Cup. The Lions of Teranga kept Les Bleus on their toes for a long time before ultimately losing 3-1 in Group I.
Dominant at times in the first half, the Senegalese even hit the post and missed a huge opportunity before the break. But after the restart, French individual quality made the difference.
Kylian Mbappé scored twice, surpassing Pelé's record of 14 World Cup goals, and celebrated his achievement by imitating a flautist, as he had promised. France defeated Senegal 3-1 on Tuesday in their opening World Cup match.
He could have scored four or five goals, okay, in theory, but we are satisfied with these two goals," said Didier Deschamps, the coach of the French team.
Mbappé touched the ball only 14 times during a goalless first half, the fewest of any player, before giving France the lead in the 66th minute. He sprinted past Senegalese captain Kalidou Koulibaly, turned to receive a diagonal pass from Michael Olise, and slotted the ball past goalkeeper Édouard Mendy from outside the penalty area.
In a segment recorded on May 20 with Mbappé and broadcast Friday by the American network Fox, award-winning actor and television host James Corden suggested that the 27-year-old star striker celebrate his next World Cup goal by imitating a flautist. Mbappé learned to play the instrument for a year or two as a child, at his parents' request.
"I'll do it for you from the first match," Mbappé said.
Mbappé rushed to a corner of the pitch, put both hands to his lips and pretended to blow into a fanfare for a few seconds.
"If he wants to have another poor first half and score two goals in the second half of another match, that's fine with me," said Deschamps.
Bradley Barcola doubled the lead in the 82nd minute, two minutes after coming on as a substitute, and then Ibrahim Mbaye pulled one back in the fifth minute of stoppage time. Mbappé scored just 68 seconds later with a spectacular right-footed strike from 30 yards. The ball dipped perfectly between Mendy's outstretched left arm and the crossbar.
"An incredible goal," said French defender William Saliba.
Mbappé, who finished as the tournament's top scorer with eight goals, moved one step ahead of Lionel Messi and his compatriot Just Fontaine in the all-time World Cup top scorers rankings, before Messi scored his 14th, 15th, and 16th goals for Argentina later on Tuesday. Mbappé is tied with Germany's Gerd Müller, behind Messi, Germany's Miroslav Klose (16), and Brazil's Ronaldo (15).
"I'm sure he'll get there," Saliba said of Mbappé and his record.
Mbappé also became France's all-time leading scorer with 58 goals, one more than Olivier Giroud.
“He might miss a game or two sometimes, but with a single move, he’s truly capable of tipping the scales and leading his team to victory,” Deschamps said. “People say he doesn’t defend enough. Well, he’s not there to defend.”
Mbappé brushed aside the criticism.
"It's not about revenge," he said. "If I started playing for everyone who criticizes me, just to silence them, I'd have to play until I'm 80."
Hoping to reach their third consecutive World Cup final, France will face Iraq on Monday in Philadelphia, then conclude Group I on June 26 against Norway in Foxborough, Massachusetts. Senegal will play Norway on Monday at MetLife Stadium and finish the group stage against Iraq in Toronto.
With Senegalese supporters having been refused a visa by the US government, the fans of the Lions of Teranga seemed confined to a few stands located in the southwest corner of MetLife Stadium, on a sunny afternoon where the temperature reached 77 degrees Fahrenheit (25 degrees Celsius).
While most of the stadium was filled with a crowd of 80,545 spectators, slightly less than the maximum capacity, some seats were unoccupied at the mezzanine club level, which has air-conditioned suites located behind the open-air seating.
Two hours before kickoff, ticket prices had dropped to as low as $69 on FIFA's resale site. In December, FIFA was selling these tickets for between $220 and $620.
France were outshot 5-1 in the first half. In the 25th minute, a shot from Senegalese striker Nicolas Jackson hit the post, rebounded off goalkeeper Mike Maignan's heel, and went out of play.
The Blues then dominated their opponents 10 to 1 in shots in the second half, when Olise moved to the centre from the right flank.
"If we had been more efficient, at half-time we could have been leading 1-0 or 2-0," said Senegal coach Pape Thiaw.
Messi scores his first World Cup hat-trick as defending champions Argentina defeat Algeria 3-0 in their opening match
On Tuesday night, Lionel Messi scored his first World Cup hat-trick while also moving into joint first place in the all-time top scorers ranking for the competition, allowing Argentina, the defending champions, to win comfortably 3-0 against Algeria in their first group stage match.
Messi scored his first goal in the opening minutes, thanks to a beautiful pass from his Inter Miami teammate, Rodrigo De Paul, and then his second on a rebound early in the second half. Shortly after scoring his third with a shot from the edge of the penalty area, he was substituted to a standing ovation from a largely pro-Argentine crowd.
These three goals brought his career total to 16, tying him with Germany's Miroslav Klose in the all-time top scorers ranking. They also allowed him to join Portugal's Cristiano Ronaldo as one of only two players to have scored in five World Cups.
"The first few World Cup matches are always difficult," Messi said after participating in the competition for a record sixth time, "and you can see that nobody gives anything away."
Finally, almost nothing. Algeria made crucial errors on Messi's first two goals, scored exactly 20 years after his World Cup debut with Argentina, in a match against Serbia and Montenegro — he also scored in that match.
“We’re not talking about just any footballer,” said Algerian coach Vladimir Petkovic. “Unfortunately, we also gave him the opportunity to score the first and second goals, and we actually made it easy for him. But Messi, thanks to his composure in the decisive moments of the match, is capable of achieving these feats with much more ease.”
Messi's brilliant hat-trick gave Argentina a much better start than at their last World Cup. Four years ago, the Albiceleste lost to Saudi Arabia in their opening match in Qatar, before bouncing back to win their third world title.
"The first match is always tricky," said Argentina coach Lionel Scaloni. "We had difficulties at the last World Cup and we needed to get off to a good start today."
Messi, who turns 39 next week, nearly scored two more goals against Algeria, never once showing that the minor hamstring injury that had worried fans in the run-up to the tournament was causing him any problems. One of his goals found the back of the net but was disallowed for a marginal offside, while another shot in the second half went just over the crossbar.
He also proved formidable in defense, helping Argentina to neutralize the Fennecs, who were clearly outclassed.
"Argentina has an exceptional player in its ranks, capable of single-handedly changing the course of a match," said Algerian star Riyad Mahrez.
Algeria's best chance came in the opening minutes when Fares Chaibi's goal was disallowed after a VAR review, which revealed he was offside. Messi scored moments later, and the rest of the evening was dominated by him and Argentina.
"I love playing football. It's been my passion since I was a little boy," Messi said. "When I'm fit, I give it my all."
The game played at Arrowhead Stadium fulfilled the long-held dream of the late Lamar Hunt, who not only founded the NFL franchise that is home to this stadium, but also played a pivotal role in the rise of football in the United States from the 1960s to the early 2000s.
Hunt played a major role in organizing the 1994 World Cup in the United States. His sons, Clark and Dan, played an equally important role in this edition.
Among the crowd gathered on this dream evening in the Heartland, Chiefs quarterback Patrick Mahomes could be seen, having traded his usual red and yellow jersey for a blue tracksuit and a white shirt, as well as his wife, Brittany.
Argentina will continue their quest for a second consecutive title in Arlington, Texas, where they will face Austria on Monday and Jordan on June 27. Algeria will play Jordan on Monday in Santa Clara, California, before taking on Austria in their final Group J match on June 27 in Kansas City.
"The goal," De Paul said, "is always to arrive on the first day and leave on the last."
