France beats Paraguay 1-0 on late penalty to reach World Cup quarterfinals

France defeated Paraguay 1-0 in a FIFA World Cup round-of-16 match on Saturday. Kylian Mbappé scored the only goal from a penalty in the 70th minute after Paraguay substitute Diego Gomez fouled Désiré Doué inside the box. Referee Ilgiz Tantashev reviewed the incident with VAR before awarding the spot kick.

Mbappé sent goalkeeper Orlando Gill the wrong way to claim his seventh goal of the tournament. The match remained scoreless through the first half. The opening period produced only five shots and a combined expected goals total of 0.20.

France advanced to the quarterfinals with the win and will face Morocco on Saturday. @BNONews reported that Morocco also advanced to the quarterfinals. France 24 reported that Mbappé's tally ties him with Lionel Messi for the Golden Boot lead.

France 24 also reported that Mbappé is the second player, alongside Messi, to score seven or more goals at two different World Cups. France entered the round of 16 after group-stage wins over Senegal, Iraq and Norway plus a round-of-32 victory against Sweden. The match took place in searing heat.

France 24 reported that France coach Didier Deschamps made one change to the starting lineup, with Manu Koné replacing Aurélien Tchouaméni.