Kylian Mbappe of France celebrates after scoring a penalty kick throughout a Group D match between the France and Poland on the Euro 2024 soccer match in Dortmund, Germany, Tuesday, June 25, 2024. (Friso Gentsch/dpa through AP)
DORTMUND, Germany — Kylian Mbappe, sporting a masks to guard his damaged nostril, marked his return on the European Championship with a aim towards Poland.
It wasn’t sufficient for a victory on Tuesday, although, and it’s not sufficient to unravel France’s rising issues at Euro 2024.
Mbappe eliminated his protecting masks to have a good time in entrance of his workforce’s followers after changing a 56th-minute penalty. However Robert Lewandowski secured a 1-1 draw for Poland with a 79th-minute spot kick that he obtained to take twice, leaving the French because the runners-up to Austria in Group D and dropping them into the identical half of the draw with Portugal and Cristiano Ronaldo, host nation Germany and Spain — three of the continent’s heavyweight nations.
Austria beat the Netherlands 3-2 in a match performed on the identical time.
READ: Mbappe breaks nostril in France Euro 2024 win
The outcome additionally means France has but to attain an open-play aim at Euro 2024, having crushed Austria 1-0 on an own-goal after which drawn 0-0 with the Dutch — when Mbappe was lacking after breaking his nostril towards the Austrians.
Les Bleus have superior, positive, however they haven’t been convincing.
“I’d be much more involved if there have been no probabilities, however clearly there’s a little little bit of room for enchancment,” France coach Didier Deschamps mentioned. “Perhaps there are different groups who’ve given off one thing a bit completely different, however the reality we haven’t scored limits our efficiency. We’re right here the place we wish to be.”
Mbappé returned to the beginning lineup towards last-place Poland, which was already eradicated earlier than the match started, and was clearly impaired by sporting a black masks that limits his peripheral imaginative and prescient.
He largely refrained from overly bodily challenges and didn’t compete for the ball within the air. He was usually seen hanging again on the fringe of the realm, ready for the ball to return to him.
Deschamps mentioned it was “sophisticated” for Mbappe.
“I believed he was fairly good on his toes with the masks — he wanted to get used to it,” the coach mentioned. “However when he sweats, that sticks in his eyes and he wanted to wipe his eyes.”
READ: Spain advances to knockout spherical at Euro 2024, beating Italy
Nonetheless, Mbappe remained France’s most harmful attacker and eventually obtained his first aim in six matches on the match — taking in 4 at Euro 2020 and two at Euro 2024 — after Ousmane Dembele was tripped within the space. It was the Actual Madrid-bound striker’s forty eighth aim for France.
Mbappé performed the complete recreation, beginning as a central striker earlier than ending up on the left wing, in one other underwhelming show from France — a two-time European champion and the World Cup runner-up in 2022.
A match towards the runner-up in Group E, which may very well be Belgium, Romania, Slovakia or Ukraine, awaits within the final 16 on July 1.
Then it will get an entire lot more durable for the French.
No less than they superior, which can’t be mentioned for Poland.
Making possible his final look at a European Championship, the 36-year-old Lewandowski departed with a aim — even when he wanted two makes an attempt to get previous goalkeeper Mike Maignan together with his stutter-step run-up.
Maignan saved the primary kick however was adjudged to have come off his line earlier than making the save.
Lewandowski had one other alternative, carried out the identical routine, and this time discovered the underside nook for his 83rd worldwide aim, even with Maignan diving the best manner.
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The identical factor occurred to Lewandowski towards France on the World Cup, when Hugo Lloris was goalkeeper. Once more, Lewandowski scored on the second try after Lloris encroached.
