Mbappe Goal Record Surpasses Jiro – France Avoids Iceland
- france,the 2018 World Cup champion and 2022 runner-up,continued its strong start to the European qualifiers for the 2026 World Cup with a 2-1 victory over Iceland on...
- Coach Didier Deschamps' team began their qualifying campaign on Friday with a 2-0 win against ukraine, thanks to goals from Michael Olise and kylian Mbappé.
- Iceland, fresh off a dominant 5-1 victory over Azerbaijan, aimed for their second-ever appearance in the World Cup finals, following their debut in 2018 where thay...
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France Secures Second Consecutive Win in 2026 World Cup Qualifying
france,the 2018 World Cup champion and 2022 runner-up,continued its strong start to the European qualifiers for the 2026 World Cup with a 2-1 victory over Iceland on Tuesday in Paris. The win marks their second successive victory in Group D.
Coach Didier Deschamps’ team began their qualifying campaign on Friday with a 2-0 win against ukraine, thanks to goals from Michael Olise and kylian Mbappé. Mbappé’s goal brought his international tally to 52, just five shy of Olivier Giroud’s all-time record of 57.
Match Details and Group standings
Iceland, fresh off a dominant 5-1 victory over Azerbaijan, aimed for their second-ever appearance in the World Cup finals, following their debut in 2018 where thay were eliminated in the group stage.However, they suffered their first defeat of the campaign against France.
A draw between Ukraine and Azerbaijan (1-1),with goals from Georgy Sudakov (51st minute) for Ukraine and amin Mahmoudov (72nd minute,penalty) for Azerbaijan,leaves both teams trailing France in the group standings.
| Team | Played | Wins | Draws | Losses | Goals For | Goals Against | Points |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| France | 2 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 4 | 1 | 6 |
| Iceland | 2 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 6 | 3 | 3 |
| Ukraine | 2 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 2 | 2 | 1 |
| Azerbaijan | 2 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 5 | 1 |
Game Recap: France Overcomes Iceland Despite Red Card
Playing without Ousmane Dembélé and Désiré Doué due to injuries sustained against Ukraine, France dominated possession from the outset. Their first encounter with Iceland in World Cup qualifying since 1957 (where France won 8-0 and 5-1) saw early pressure from the home side.
Iceland created the first serious chance of the match through Michael Anderson, whose long-range shot was saved by French goalkeeper Mike Maignan in the 11th minute.
France responded with a perilous possibility for Marcus Thuram, who found himself one-on-one with the goalkeeper, but Elias Olafon made a crucial save in the 15th minute.
France conceded a surprising goal after a costly error by Michael Olise.