The eighth match of the FIFA World Cup 2022 pitted the reigning champions France against Australia today, and we finally got to see it. As is always the case when the defending champions play their first match of the previous edition, France, whose last World Cup match was in 2018, had high expectations on their shoulders as they defeated a tenacious Croatia 4-2 in the final.
Australia took an early lead in the face-off at the Al Janoub stadium when Craig Goodwin netted the first goal of the game in the ninth minute. France did take the lead early in the first half and made a few unsuccessful scoring attempts, but Australia quickly adjusted and attacked the French goal. McGree’s missed attempt to score in the third minute gave them their first chance. They scored their first goal a short while later off of Goodwin’s kicks.
The French players maintained their composure and began applying pressure to the Australians with deft passes while retaining as much ball possession as they could. When France’s Adrien Rabiot equalized the score in the 27th minute, they were presented with a wonderful opportunity. Oliver Giroud then scored a quick goal to give them the lead in the 32nd minute. For the remainder of the first half, France kept up the pressure and played a dominant game. High-speed action occurred in the 45th minute when Griezmann sprinted to the right and threw in a shot for Mbappe to score, but the forward narrowly missed the crossbar. The first half was extended by 8 minutes, but nothing changed. The first half ended with France leading Australia 2-1.
In the 49th minute, after the teams had switched sides in the second half, Giroud attempted a beautiful bicycle kick but missed the target after Theo’s excellent cross. Australia’s Duke gets replaced by Cummins after receiving a warning. Theo continued to attack the Australian defense while sending Giroud another superb pass, but nothing came of it. There was definitely pressure on the Australian defenders.
Veteran player and tournament favorite Kylian Mbappe scored to make it 3-1 for France after 68 minutes, and then Olivier Giroud added another in the 71st. Giroud scores again to give France a comfortable 4-1 lead over Australia. The remainder of the second half saw a number of substitutions as Australia struggled to keep up with the Frenchmen’s quick-firing pace. The referee blows the whistle to declare the game over eight minutes past the 90-second mark. The defending champions won handily, 4-1!
It was a complete attacking masterclass put on by France, picking apart Australia in style. Additionally, the double score by Oliver Giroud also made him France’s joint-highest goalscorer in World Cups, leveling veteran Theirry Henry with 51 goals.
To get more post-match updates, stay tuned with h3bet.com as we keep bringing you all the happenings of the FIFA World Cup 2022 right from this opener to the final match!