Doha: Defending champions France defeated Australia 4-1 in the World Cup Football Group D. In the match that took place yesterday at the Al Janab Arena in Doha, the capital of Qatar, Aussie scored in the 9th minute. Craig Goodwin stunned the French team with a spectacular goal. France fans were worried as an already strong Argentina team was beaten by Saudi Arabia. However, the champions immediately recovered from this initial shock and played cohesively against the Aussies. They showed water to the side.
As a result of this, Adrien Rabiot of the French team took advantage of the corner opportunity in the 26th minute and scored a goal to equalize 1-1. France continued to attack with the same spirit and in the 32nd minute, Olivier Groute scored a magnificent goal to take a 2-1 lead. It remained the same until the break. France dominated the second half as star player Kylian Mbappe scored in the 68th minute and Olivier Groute scored again in the 71st minute to make it 4-1. After that, both teams’ efforts to score failed. At the end of a thrilling game, France recorded their first victory by defeating the Aussies 4-1.
* With FIFA banning the ‘One Love’ band, Germany’s players who clashed with Japan yesterday showed their protest by lining up with their mouths covered before kick-off. The German government has also commented that FIFA’s ban is unfortunate.
* Saudi player Yasser Al Sharani has undergone surgery after sustaining severe facial injuries after clashing with goalkeeper Mohammed Al Owaiz during a league match against Argentina. The Saudi team management said that he will not play any more in the current World Cup series.