French players celebrating the goal. Kylian Mbappe (Right)
Kylian Mbappe has written himself into the World Cup history books
with France after opening the scoring against Peru on Thursday.
Having drawn a blank on his tournament debut against Australia, the
Paris Saint-Germain star was on hand to strike in the first half.
While it appeared Olivier Giroud’s deflected effort was heading
into the net after fine recovery work from Paul Pogba, Mbappe made
certain to put France on course for a second Group C win with a simple
close-range finish.
And in doing so the teenage sensation set a new milestone for his nation at a major tournament.
At 19 years and six months, Mbappe is now the youngest player ever
to score for France at a finals, including both World Cup and European
Championship competition.
In setting the new record, he also overtakes two Les Bleus
legends. Thierry Henry and David Trezeguet were the previous holders of
that distinction, achieved during the 1998 World Cup.
The pair both found the net at the age of 20 as the European team
lifted the trophy for the first time in their history on home soil.
Mbappe, of course, does not remember that campaign, and is in fact
the first player born after France 1998 to score at a World Cup.
Can the star teenager and his team-mates inspire France to a similar result in Russia?