*This content was translated by AI.
France's current coach expressed anger toward Paraguay's unsportsmanlike play.
On the 5th (Korea time), France defeated Paraguay 1-0 in the Round of 16 match of the 2026 FIFA World Cup held at Philadelphia Stadium in the United States. Ace Kylian Mbappe (Real Madrid) scored the winning goal with a penalty kick in the 25th minute of the second half.
With this victory, France continued its journey toward its third World Cup title. France has previously won the tournament in the 1998 home edition and the 2018 Russia edition. Although they narrowly finished as runners-up at the previous 2022 Qatar tournament, they are now aiming for another championship in this competition.
However, the match against Paraguay was by no means easy due to the opponent's rough play. France committed 11 fouls on this day, while Paraguay recorded 13. No players were sent off, and three French players received yellow cards. In contrast, not a single Paraguayan player received a yellow card. Based solely on the numbers, it might appear that France played more roughly.
However, the game content was different. Paraguay continued rough tackles and physical confrontations against French players until the final whistle blew. There were also numerous unsportsmanlike plays that made one frown in disgust. Mbappe was hit by an opponent's elbow during the first half. After the match, Mbappe said, "We can play dirty too," targeting Paraguay's rough tactics.
French local media also reacted strongly. The French outlet L'Equipe stated, "It may sound surprising, but Paraguay received only one yellow card in the Round of 16 match against France. That too was not for a player, but for senior coach Carlos Gonzalez," and pointed out that "given how extremely rough Paraguayan players played, the punishment was far too light."
The outlet strongly criticized the situation where not a single Paraguayan player received a yellow card, calling it "almost a perfect crime" and "close to a miracle." It further noted, "Paraguayan players repeatedly engaged in aggressive and unsportsmanlike play."
Criticism also continued toward referee Jigis Tantachev, who officiated the match. L'Equipe reported, "The situation became ridiculous. Referee Tantachev, of Uzbekistan nationality, only pulled out cards after the final whistle blew. And even then, the warning was given not to a player but to senior coach Gonzalez."
It also emphasized that although Paraguay committed more fouls than France, all three yellow cards were issued solely to French players.
L'Equipe also pointed out specific incidents. It explained that there was an elbow strike aimed at Mbappe in the 39th minute of the first half, a collision with Desire Doue without any ball involvement in the 19th minute of the second half, and a scene where Mbappe's shin was intentionally kicked in the 33rd minute of the second half. It then noted, "There were scenes against Paraguay that warranted punishment equal to or even greater than the warnings France received."
However, referee Tantachev took no significant action. L'Equipe stated, "Yet surprisingly, referee Tantachev showed no reaction at all," and gave the referee a mere 1 out of 10 points.
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*This content was translated by AI.
