Kylian Mbappe was instrumental in France’s triumph over Austria, which allowed them to start their Euro 2024 campaign with a 1-0 victory.
In the 2022 World Cup final, France was defeated by Argentina in a penalty shootout, and this was the first time that they had competed in a major tournament since that disappointment.
Maximilian Wober scored the first goal for Les Bleus in the 38th minute when he turned the ball into his own net after deflecting it from Mbappe’s driving crossfield pass.
Mbappe was presented with a wonderful opportunity to break his European Championship duck when he bore in on goal, but he placed his right-foot drive just wide of the left-hand post of the goalie. This came after Mbappe had failed to score at the Euro 2020 tournament.
Following a collision with Kevin Danso, the captain of France ultimately endured a painful conclusion to the evening. It is believed that he also suffered a broken nose as a result of the incident.
Following that, Mbappe was taken out of the game, which meant that Didier Deschamps’ team had to make it through the final parts of the tournament without their captain. Despite this, the team that won the 2018 World Cup remained resolute and managed to secure an encouraging clean sheet and all of the points.
It should come as no surprise that Mbappe was selected to start for France in his debut game playing for Real Madrid. This was his first appearance after his signing with the club.
It took Mbappe less than ten minutes to get his first significant sight of goal. He drove into the box, but Austrian goalkeeper Patrick Pentz denied him at the near post. This was Mbappe’s first meaningful sight of goal from the field.
The Austrians may have been given a scare early on, but they certainly had moments of promise in the first quarter. One of these times occurred in the 35th minute, when they created a wonderful opportunity to grab the lead.
Marcel Sabitzer made a cushioned pass from Michael Gregoritsch’s lofted cross to Christoph Baumgartner, who attempted to lift the ball over Mike Maignan, but the AC Milan goalkeeper knocked it around the post. Baumgartner’s attempt was unsuccessful.
Not much longer after that, Ralf Rangnick’s team was forced to bemoan their misfortune as the 2022 World Cup finalists took the lead thanks to Mbappe’s determination and a bit of luck.
The player, who had previously played for Paris Saint-Germain, displayed a great lot of dexterity and speed in order to get away from Phillipp Mwene and make room for a driven cross. The cross found its way to Wober’s head, and Wober missed the target by diverting it into his own goal while attempting to deal with the delivery.
For France, Mbappe appeared to be on his way to adding his own name to the scoresheet because he sprinted through on goal in the early parts of the second period. This came after he had assisted his side in establishing a lead at the halftime break.
In spite of this, the France captain was only able to direct the ball beyond of Pentz’s goal, which came as a surprise to everyone who was there at the Dusseldorf Arena. He was attempting to find the bottom corner of the net.
After that, Austria managed to avoid another fright when Marcus Thuram found himself in a promising position. However, the determined Pentz blocked his near-post shot, which allowed Das Team to remain within striking distance of their heavyweight opponents France.
Austria’s attempts to carve out a late equalizer ultimately proved fruitless, as they suffered their first loss since October 2023. Despite the fact that they showed a great deal of determination, in the end, they were unsuccessful.
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