France meet Paraguay in World Cup last 16 with Mbappe in scoring form

France face Paraguay in the World Cup round of 16 on Saturday in Philadelphia, with Kylian Mbappe leading a team that has won all four of its matches at the tournament. Paraguay arrive with belief after eliminating Germany on penalties, a result Al Jazeera and AFP reported prompted a national holiday back home.

The match is scheduled for Saturday, July 4, at Philadelphia Stadium, with kickoff at 5pm local time and 21:00 GMT. According to Al Jazeera and AFP, neither side has suspensions or reported injury concerns before the knockout tie.

France have scored 13 goals across four wins at this World Cup, including a 3-0 victory over Sweden in the round of 32. Mbappe scored twice in that match, while Bradley Barcola also found the net after Michael Olise helped drive France’s attack.

Mbappe’s goals against Sweden lifted him to six for the tournament, level with Lionel Messi in the golden boot race, according to Al Jazeera and AFP. The France captain now has 18 career World Cup goals, one fewer than Messi’s reported total of 19.

France chasing another deep run

France won the World Cup in 2018 and lost the 2022 final on penalties. Al Jazeera and AFP reported that Didier Deschamps’s side are trying to become the third team in tournament history to reach three straight finals, after West Germany and Brazil.

Deschamps, who is in his final tournament as France coach before stepping down, praised the connection between his forwards after the Sweden win. “There is an excellent rapport between the attacking players. They speak the same footballing language,” he said.

The France coach also warned against dismissing Paraguay. “They are not here by chance. Germany are a top side, and they have that South American DNA, which means they get stuck in,” Deschamps said. “And they have good players too. You can’t just qualify for the last 16 of the World Cup like that by chance.”

Paraguay build on Germany upset

Paraguay reached the last 16 after beating Germany 4-3 in a shootout following a 1-1 draw. Julio Enciso headed Paraguay in front from Matias Galarza’s cross in the 42nd minute before Kai Havertz equalised eight minutes after halftime from Florian Wirtz’s delivery, according to Al Jazeera and AFP.

Germany had a Jonathan Tah goal from a corner ruled out after a VAR review for a foul on Paraguay’s goalkeeper. Havertz missed Germany’s opening penalty, and Germany missed three kicks in total while Paraguay missed two.

Enciso, who plays for Strasbourg in France, said Paraguay understand the scale of the task. “We also have our own strengths, and with our style of play, we’re going to try to make things difficult for any opponent,” he said.

Heat, history and odds

Conditions could play a role in Philadelphia, where temperatures are forecast to reach 37 degrees Celsius, or 98 Fahrenheit, according to Al Jazeera and AFP. France have already played in the city at this World Cup, with their 3-0 group-stage win over Iraq halted for two hours because of rain and thunder.

The teams have met five times, with France winning three and two matches ending in draws. Their previous World Cup knockout meeting came in 1998, when France beat Paraguay 1-0 after extra time on the way to winning the trophy on home soil with Deschamps as captain.

Opta’s supercomputer gives France a 78.8 percent chance of winning in regulation time, Paraguay a 7.6 percent chance and extra time a 13.7 percent probability. France’s expected lineup is a 4-2-3-1 led by Mbappe, while Paraguay are projected to use a 4-3-3 featuring Enciso, Miguel Almiron and Gabriel Avalos.

This story draws on original reporting from Al Jazeera.