France booked their spot in the World Cup quarterfinals with an ugly, physical and heated 1-0 win over Paraguay in the round of 16, courtesy of a Kylian Mbappe penalty in the 70th minute. The breakthrough came when substitute Desire Doue was brought down in the box by Paraguay's Diego Gomez, with the referee initially waving play on. VAR intervened and the ref awarded the spot kick.
Mbappe stepped up and calmly slotted home to the bottom right corner, sending the fans of the reigning World Cup runners-up into celebration.
The goal was Mbappe's seventh of the tournament, drawing him level with Lionel Messi atop the Golden Boot standings. It proved decisive, as France held on for the clean sheet to advance. Paraguay, who had stunned Germany on penalties in the previous round, saw their surprise run come to an end.
France will face Morocco in the quarterfinals on Thursday.
It's France's first physical challenge of the tournament, and they passed it, but things will get tougher facing Morocco in Boston on July 9th. On the bright side, five days will be enough time to recover, but Morocco has been quite physical as well during this tournament.
A cheer went out among the Paraguayan fans as that was announced, but I'm not sure if the players have 10 more minutes in them.
So this is the issue when you play in a way that needs you to score the first goal, after conceding, is there another gear? Without Almiron and Enciso on the field, who can bring the magic?
It took a VAR review for it to be given, but Mbappe is up at the spot to take, and he won't miss his chance as France goes ahead right before the second half hydration break in the 69th minute. That's seven goals at the World Cup for Mbappe as he's back in a tie with Lionel Messi for the Golden Boot.
This is where the heat plays a part. Surely, Paraguay would like for him to go a full 90 minutes, but it's just not possible today. Bradley Barcola also exits for Desire Doue.
Paraguay passes. France takes the ball. France shoots from outside the box off target. Rinse and repeat.
Someone please work the ball into the box in the second half.
But Upamecano was there to clean things up. Despite the lack of possession, Paraguay have created chances but France haven't had issues stopping them.
Not sure how long this will hold up in this heat, but despite their possession advantage, France gave away a free kick that could've created a chance for Paraguay. With the need to make the most of set plays and long thows, this will be a game of inches after there's a coming together after a shoving match between Andres Cubas and Kylian Mbappe.
France have had 85% posession early but nothing to show for it as Paraguay are frustrating them and clogging passing lanes. The difference here is that France have the talent to take shots from outside the box and hit them, and if just one goes in, this game is getting blown open.
Given the heat and what France have going forward, you can't blame the man, but Paraguay have 10 men behind the ball at all times in the first 10 minutes of play. This will be the most physical test that France have faced so far.
Paraguayan fans are happy with the start to the game as they've pushed forward but William Saliba has been more than ready to clean up their attempts at attacking in the early going.
There's a strong presence from fans on both sides as despite the heat, we're going to have a good game on tap. Just hope that everone stays hydrated because this heat is dangerous.
He has been a driving force behind this team so far.
"Michael is an exceptional player; we've seen that game after game. I think he has reached five assists, which is extraordinary in such a competition. He's a prominent player and gave a lot on the pitch," Desire Doue said. "I believe that all the players do get on well with him. He's really timid and discreet when it comes to the media, but we do laugh a lot with him, I'm just hoping that it continues helping us."
The stands aren't as full as they normally would be at this stage, but you also can't blame people for not wanting to be in their seats. Fans are being handed out, but when its this hot, can that really help?
Kone comes back into the lineup as the only change from their round of 32 victory to get here.
France: Mike Maignan; Jules Kounde, Dayot Upamecano, William Saliba, Lucas Digne; Kouadio Kone, Adrien Rabiot; Ousmane Dembele, Michael Olise, Desire Doue; Kylian Mbappe
Paraguay's Argentina-born boss, Gustavo Alfaro, was quite blunt when describing what his team will face on Saturday.
"Allow me to try to define this. I am someone who grew up in the countryside in Rafaela (Argentina). When a storm would light with lightning, you had to go back home, because we had no protection from lightning," Alfraro said in his pre-match press conference. "You cannot go behind that tree, because you can get struck by lightning on the tree. France is like one of those storms, you know. We're facing this storm, and you have to see how to protect yourself from lightning. This is a way in which I can tell you the kind of match we're facing."
Date: Saturday, July 4 | Time: 5 p.m. ET
Location: Lincoln Financial Field -- Philadelphia, Penn.
TV: FOX (Eng), Telemundo (Spa) | Live stream: Fubo (Try for free)
Odds: Paraguay +1600; Draw +600; France -599
Morocco are through after beating Canada 3-0 earlier in the day, and they'll get the winner of this one, a match between the World Cup favorites and the team that ousted Germany. Lots to play for, and weather may be a factor. Incredibly high temperatures and humidity will make this a slog, but we will see who can handle it better.
Welcome in to the CBS Sports live blog of the World Cup round of 16 clash between France and Paraguay! Our Chuck Booth will be checking in shortly from the stadium as we await our second quarterfinalist of the day!
