"Lost 0-4, laughing with the captain and swapping jerseys at halftime" — Mbappé's antics draw criticism... yet he explodes with multiple goals in the second half, "surpassing Messi"

*This content was translated by AI.

French national team striker Kylian Mbappé (28) came under fire for swapping jerseys with an opposing player and laughing while conversing with the captain at halftime.

Britain's "The Sun" reported on the 19th (Korea time) that football commentator Owen Hargreaves pointed out Mbappé's action of exchanging jerseys with Declan Rice immediately after the first half ended.

England, managed by Thomas Tuchel, defeated France 6-4 in a hard-fought third-place playoff match held at Miami Stadium in Miami, USA, on this day. With this result, England finished the tournament in third place, their highest position since hosting the 1966 World Cup.

The media stated, "France conceded four consecutive goals in the first half alone, falling behind by a large margin of 0-4. However, Mbappé emerged from the tunnel to prepare for the second half, chatting cheerfully with England's manager Thomas Tuchel. The two have a past connection, having served as coach and player together at Paris Saint-Germain (PSG) for two years."

It further added, "Even though it was a third-place match, the warm and friendly scene between the two while France was suffering a crushing defeat in one of the World Cup's biggest matches caused significant embarrassment among fans."

Notably, images were released showing Mbappé walking into the tunnel shirtless while holding an England jersey in his hand. Declan Rice, who followed behind him, was also seen clutching a French jersey, revealing that the two had exchanged jerseys well before halftime. Commenting on this, former England international Hargreaves told Fox Sports, "It is a very, very strange behavior."

Separate from these controversies, Mbappé demonstrated fierce concentration in the second half. Scoring multiple goals in the 3rd and 21st minutes of the second half, he reached his tournament's 9th and 10th goals, surpassing Argentina's Lionel Messi (8 goals) to take sole possession of the top spot in the scoring standings.

If Messi fails to score two or more goals in Sunday's final against Spain on the 20th, Mbappé will become the back-to-back Golden Boot winner (top scorer), following his 8 goals and 2 assists at the 2022 Qatar World Cup. No player has ever won the top scorer award twice consecutively in World Cup history, but Mbappé is aiming to achieve this feat.

Furthermore, with his 22nd career World Cup goal, Mbappé surpassed Messi (21 goals) to become the all-time leading scorer in World Cup history.

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*This content was translated by AI.