July 2, Pakistan -- Kylian Mbappé netted his 17th and 18th World Cup goals throughout his career as he continued to vie with Lionel Messi and etch his name into tournament lore during France's 3-0 win against Sweden in the Round of 32 match.
Mbappe is currently one goal behind Messi in the all-time competition scoring chart, and with his fifth and sixth goals of this year's event, he has tied the 39-year-old in the race for the Golden Boot.
Lionel Messi and the Argentine team will compete against Cape Verde on Friday in Miami Gardens, Florida, during their Round of 32 encounter.
Bradley Barcola scored his second goal of the competition following the break, with the two-time FIFA World Cup winners maintaining their strong performance, securing victories in all four group-stage games with an overall scoreline of 13-2.
Michael Olize provided two assists in Tuesday's win, marking the first-round-of-32 game of the competition (one out of six matches so far) that was settled by more than one goal. Coach Didier Deschamps' team will face Paraguay on Saturday in Philadelphia. Paraguay caused an upset by defeating four-time winners Germany via penalty shootout after a 1-1 tie on Monday in Foxborough, Massachusetts.
Sweden were knocked out after experiencing one of the most chaotic World Cup campaigns recently, winning against Tunisia with a score of 5-1 and subsequently falling to the Netherlands by the same margin, before securing a 1-1 draw in their final group match against Japan to progress to the elimination stage. This marked their first advancement from a group in a significant competition since the 2020 European Championship (held in 2021). Sweden did not manage to qualify for the 2022 World Cup or the 2024 Euros.
Swedish manager Graham Potter stated that his squad would have to deliver their finest performance of the competition to stand a realistic chance against the strongly anticipated French side, but they failed to meet even a fraction of that standard from the outset.
France held control during the first half, as Mbappé and Oliè both struck the post, with Oliè also prompting Jacob Widell Zetterstrom to make a remarkable low dive save. Following the frustration from these close calls, Mbappé provided France with a well-earned advantage in the 45th minute.
Olive and Ousmane Dembele created an opportunity from a brief corner kick, allowing Mbappé to get inside on the left side of the penalty area. Mbappé moved back towards his right against Viktor Gyokeres before scoring decisively beyond Widell Zetterstrom. Eight minutes following halftime, Barcola extended the lead by netting past Widell Zetterstrom during a counterattack, after receiving a smooth pass from Olive that went between a Swedish player’s legs.
Mbappé scored France's goal in the 74th minute, sprinting forward after receiving another penetrating pass from Olié on the left flank inside the box, then netting with a strike remarkably akin to his first goal.
Eleven minutes after kickoff, Deschamps was able to send his top player out early, as the fan at the northern end of New York New Jersey Stadium gave him a warm round of applause when he left the field.