Kylian Mbappe added two more goals to his World Cup tally as France breezed past Sweden to reach the last-16. Les Bleus romped through the group stage as and did not break stride here as they rolled over a competent Sweden side which failed comprehensively to lay a glove on their opposition. A supreme performance in the Blagult net from Jacob Widell Zetterstrom kept the scoreline respectable and frustrated France until the dying embers of the first half, when Mbappe finally broke the deadlock.
A thundering Bradley Barcola finish double their advantage after the break, before Mbappe slotted home to put Graham Potter’s side to the sword. Mbappe’s brace draws him level with Lionel Messi atop the Golden Boot standings at this World Cup, though he has played one match more than his Argentinian rival.
France will now face giant killers Paraguay, who on Monday stunned Germany with a shootout victory, in the next round. Catch up with the action as it happened below with Standard Sport’s dedicated match blog, complete with expert insight and analysis.
France vs Sweden latest news
- GOAL! Mbappe gets customary brace
- GOAL! Barcola doubles France lead
- GOAL! Mbappe deservedly breaks the deadlock
- France XI
- Sweden XI
FULL-TIME: France 3-0 Sweden
23:53 , Arthur Ferridge
That does it! France progress to the last 16 as Sweden exit with a whimper.
France 3-0 Sweden
23:51 , Arthur Ferridge
90+2mins: Doue puts a nice ball into the box for Mateta but it just bounces awkwardly for the Crystal Palace frontman and his shot goes over.
France 3-0 Sweden
23:49 , Arthur Ferridge
90mins: Isak is hooked in favour of Nilsson, who gets a run out for the last few minutes of Sweden’s World Cup campaign.
France 3-0 Sweden
23:48 , Arthur Ferridge
89mins: A rare shot on target for Sweden as Gyokeres hits a loose ball first time, but Maignan is more than equal to it.
France 3-0 Sweden
23:43 , Arthur Ferridge
84mins: France flex their muscles by introducing Mateta and Cherki in place of Mbappe and Olise.
France 3-0 Sweden
23:41 , Arthur Ferridge
82mins: A sublime fake shot from Barcola drops two markers, but Zetterstrom foils his shot.
That, per FotMob, was his eighth save of the night.
France 3-0 Sweden
23:40 , Arthur Ferridge
80mins: France are not resting on their laurels here as Doue calls Zetterstrom back into action.
For Sweden, the best case may now be to just pull one back and give the fans something to celebrate before they head home.
GOAL! France 3-0 Sweden | Mbappe '74
23:34 , Arthur Ferridge
One more for good measure from Mbappe, who caps off a tidy move with a correspondingly tidy finish to dash Sweden’s World Cup hopes.
France 2-0 Sweden
23:31 , Arthur Ferridge
71mins: France bear down on the Sweden goal as soon as the hydration break ends and Olise is clean through, but takes one touch too many and the chance goes begging.
France 2-0 Sweden
23:27 , Arthur Ferridge
67mins: Must say, Sweden seem to be largely out of ideas. Even in possession, there is no real initiative beyond speculative long balls.
We are heading into the second and final hydration break, though. Let’s see if that livens them up at all.
France 2-0 Sweden
23:24 , Arthur Ferridge
65mins: France break at pace and the move culminates in an Olise shot, which Gudmundsson blocks behind for a corner.
Potter lines up changes as Zeneli and Ali replace Bergvall and Stroud.
France 2-0 Sweden
23:21 , Arthur Ferridge
61mins: This match has an Olise screamer written all over it if he keeps trying these shots. He whips another shot at Zetterstrom’s bottom corner and is denied.
France 2-0 Sweden
23:17 , Arthur Ferridge
57mins: Commentators are pondering whether Sweden should play for ‘damage limitation’ or just go for it. You get the impression they only really have one choice, given this is a knockout match.
GOAL! France 2-0 Sweden | Barcola '53
23:12 , Arthur Ferridge
Its two out of nowhere! Barcola drives home with an absolute piledriver!
France 1-0 Sweden
23:11 , Arthur Ferridge
52mins: Kounde makes a productive run forward but his cross is cut out. France attack again through Dembele but he is flagged offside before he can make much progress.
France 1-0 Sweden
23:09 , Arthur Ferridge
50mins: A tentative start to the second half from both sides here. The first shot comes out as Tchouameni shoots extremely high and particularly wide from distance.
2ND HALF: France 1-0 Sweden
23:04 , Arthur Ferridge
Play resumes in New Jersey.
HALF-TIME: France 1-0 Sweden
22:50 , Arthur Ferridge
There’s the break! A narrow lead for France at the half-way stage.
France 1-0 Sweden
22:48 , Arthur Ferridge
45+3mins: Elanga crashes to the ground in the box after Digne pulls him down and wants a penalty, but the offside flag rescues France.
France 1-0 Sweden
22:48 , Arthur Ferridge
45+2mins: So close to an immediate equaliser! Kounde does brilliantly to deny Gyokeres a tap in, before Stroud shoots over.
GOAL! France 1-0 Sweden | Mbappe 45'
22:45 , Arthur Ferridge
There it is! Mbappe hits the opener on the stroke of half-time.
France 0-0 Sweden
22:45 , Arthur Ferridge
44mins: This is going to get frustrating very, very quickly for France, who remain without a goal despite having had the majority of possession, shots, and chances.
They’ll want to take the lead before half-time, but Olise draws another fine save from Zetterstrom.
France 0-0 Sweden
22:42 , Arthur Ferridge
42mins: Olise is the latest to have a go from range, and curls one just wide of the left post.
France 0-0 Sweden
22:40 , Arthur Ferridge
40mins: Mbappe has a go from range, but it is an easy stop for Zetterstrom.
France 0-0 Sweden
22:36 , Arthur Ferridge
36mins: And again! Olise hits the post with a stunning bicycle kick before Dembele misses the mark with his rebound! A first goal must be coming soon.
France 0-0 Sweden
22:32 , Arthur Ferridge
32mins: How has that stayed out! Mbappe has near enough an open goal but rattles the post, and the rebound also stays out after hitting Lindelof!
France 0-0 Sweden
22:30 , Arthur Ferridge
30mins: Lagerbielke makes a crucial intervention to deny Mbappe a shooting chance. On the following play, Rabiot sees a stinging shot blocked and wins a corner. France upping the pressure now.
France 0-0 Sweden
22:28 , Arthur Ferridge
27mins: A clever Sweden set-piece hands a shooting chance to Isak, but he is smothered by Saliba and the chance goes begging.
France 0-0 Sweden
22:26 , Arthur Ferridge
26mins: And we are back underway following the hydration break. Will the second quarter of this match bear its first (legal) goal?
France 0-0 Sweden
22:22 , Arthur Ferridge
22mins: We’ve just seen the semi-automated offside imagery of the Mbappe offside decision. It is fractional at best.
France 0-0 Sweden
22:20 , Arthur Ferridge
21mins: The decision stands. No goal!
NO GOAL! France 0-0 Sweden
22:20 , Arthur Ferridge
Mbappe goes through one-on-one and buries it... but the offside flag is up!
VAR is checking...
France 0-0 Sweden
22:19 , Arthur Ferridge
19mins: Barcola makes a driving run into the Sweden box, starting on the half-way line, but just shoots over.
France 0-0 Sweden
22:19 , Arthur Ferridge
19mins: Lagerbielke knocks the free-kick down but Sweden cannot do anything with the territory and Tchouameni clears France’s lines.
France 0-0 Sweden
22:18 , Arthur Ferridge
18mins: Gyokeres gets the better of his Arsenal team-mate Saliba and wins a free-kick for Sweden. It is only just inside the French half, but is an opportunity to whip a ball into the mixer.
France 0-0 Sweden
22:15 , Arthur Ferridge
14mins: Kounde has had a great tournament and does well to win a first corner of the afternoon for France.
Dembele whips it in for Lindelof to clear, and Digne’s long-range effort on the rebound is well saved.
France 0-0 Sweden
22:11 , Arthur Ferridge
11mins: Sweden make a tentative foray forwards which is quite quickly kiboshed by the France defence. No quarter given.
France 0-0 Sweden
22:10 , Arthur Ferridge
10mins: For the record, the winner of this match will face Paraguay in the next round.
France 0-0 Sweden
22:09 , Arthur Ferridge
8mins: Possession-wise, it has been all France so far. This is a patient build-up from Les Bleus, though, who are perhaps looking to conserve energy here.
Their remarkable depth off the bench could prove key today.
France 0-0 Sweden
22:05 , Arthur Ferridge
4mins: Olise swings a deep free kick into the Sweden box which is batted about by a number of headers from both sides and ultimately cleared.
France 0-0 Sweden
22:03 , Arthur Ferridge
3mins: The first chance of the day falls to Isak, who shoots from the edge of the box under pressure from Upamecano and Maignan makes a routine save.
France 0-0 Sweden
22:02 , Arthur Ferridge
2mins: It is absolutely baking hot in New Jersey, by the way. Beating sun and 32C. That’ll make it difficult for both sides to play the way they like to.
KICK-OFF! France 0-0 Sweden
22:00 , Arthur Ferridge
And we’re off!
21:57 , Arthur Ferridge
That’s the anthems done and dusted. Now time to get going!
Here we go
21:50 , Arthur Ferridge
The players are taking to the pitch! Anthems up next, and then, kick-off.
Team news reminder
21:45 , Arthur Ferridge
With 15 minutes to kick-off, a reminder of today’s XIs.
France XI: Maignan, Digne, Upamecano, Kounde, Saliba, Tchouameni, Rabiot, Dembele, Mbappe, Olise, Barcola
Sweden XI: Zetterstrom, Lagerbielke, Lindelof, Gudmundsson, Svensson, Stroud, Bergvall, Ayari, Isak, Elanga, Gyokeres
Atmosphere building in New York
21:36 , Arthur Ferridge
World Cup Golden Boot race standings
21:30 , Arthur Ferridge
Lionel Messi - 6
Erling Haaland - 5
Kylian Mbappe - 4
Ousmane Dembele - 4
Vinicius Jr - 4
Three goals: Wissa, Kane, Ismaila Sarr, Saibari, Cunha, David, Manzambi
Two goals: Mahrez, Arnautovic, Bellingham, Trossard, Pape Gueye, Quinones, Mahmic, Vargas, Munoz, Ronaldo, Oyarzabal, Ayari, Balogin, Larin
Potter: France match a 'once in a lifetime chance'
21:26 , Arthur Ferridge
"Against the top teams you have to get the balance right, and we want to play the best game we have ever played. It is a brilliant challenge and opportunity for this team
"They have quality all over. We respect our opponents, obviously. They have won the World Cup before and they have a fantastic manager.
"We need to make sure the players have belief and understand the challenge because we are facing a top team.
"But we want to seize the once-in-a-lifetime chance to play in this stadium against one of the biggest teams in the world, at the World Cup, in New York."
Can Sweden pull off another upset?
21:21 , Arthur Ferridge
There has already been plenty of precedent for notable upsets at this World Cup.
Paraguay sinking Germany after a penalty shootout yesterday is currently the most notable example, by a distance.
Japan came close, too, but were beaten by a last-minute winner from Brazil.
Can Sweden do something special against the facourites here?
Saliba injury latest
21:16 , Arthur Ferridge
Didier Deschamps insists William Saliba’s back problem will not be a problem for him today despite reports suggesting he may need to undergo surgery later this summer.
"William is doing well. Whether he is not at 100 per cent yes, but if he is at 99 per cent that's fine.
“It is not something that undermines him or prevents him from playing freely like he has been able to do in the first two matches."
How one tactics tweak unlocked France's attack
21:06 , Arthur Ferridge
If you thought France couldn’t get any better, think again. Somehow, Les Bleus have turned it up to 11, and look more likely World Cup winners than ever.
France closed out the group stage facing Norway in Boston, and, with both sides already qualified for the round of 32, came up with perhaps their biggest victory yet.
It was a chance to fine-tune and build momentum for another trophy challenge, despite manager Didier Deschamps’ absence following the death of his mother.
They won 4-1, and the rout was in part down to a minor tactical tweak, which saw Michael Olise, generally employed on the right wing, trade places with usual No10 Dembele.
Sweden team news
20:56 , Arthur Ferridge
Much is made of France’s limitless squad depth, but there is certainly something to be said for Sweden’s front four of Alexander Isak, Yasin Ayari, Viktor Gyokeres and Anthony Elanga, who have all impressed at times this summer.
Lucas Bergvall starts in midfield with conversations regarding his future ongoing.
France team news
20:46 , Arthur Ferridge
There is more rotation for France today, with Desire Doue taken out of the front four and replaced by Bradley Barcola, who marked his sole start at this tournament with a goal against Senegal.
In midfield, Adrien Rabiot and Aurelien Tchouameni are the two selected, with Manu Kone missing out.
Lucas Digne replaces Theo Hernandez, while Maxence Lacroix is dropped in favour of William Saliba.
SWEDEN CONFIRMED TEAM NEWS
20:36 , Arthur Ferridge
Sweden XI: Zetterstrom, Lagerbielke, Lindelof, Gudmundsson, Svensson, Stroud, Bergvall, Ayari, Isak, Elanga, Gyokeres
Subs: V. Johansson, Nordfeldt, H. Johansson, Ekdal, Starfelt, Smith, Bernhardsson, Nygren, Sema, Karlstrom, Svanberg, Zeneli, Nilsson, Ali
FRANCE CONFIRMED TEAM NEWS
20:34 , Arthur Ferridge
France XI: Maignan, Digne, Upamecano, Kounde, Saliba, Tchouameni, Rabiot, Dembele, Mbappe, Olise, Barcola
Subs: Samba, Risser, Gusto, Konate, T. Hernandez, L. Hernandez, Lacroix, Kone, Kante, Zaire-Emery, Cherki, Akliouche, Thuram, Doue, Mateta
Team news coming up shortly...
20:25 , Arthur Ferridge
Tonight’s lineups will be released in just a few minutes!
France vs Sweden head to head
20:15 , Arthur Ferridge
This is the first-ever meeting between France and Sweden at the World Cup finals, after facing each other in qualification campaigns in 1969, 1993 and 2016.
France wins: 12
Sweden wins: 6
Draws: 5
Standard Sport prediction
20:05 , Arthur Ferridge
France are justifiably one of the favourites for this World Cup. Their attackers are on fire, the defence is solid even with rotation, and Deschamps has taken Les Bleus to two World Cup finals as a manager (winning in 2018) and captained them for their 1998 win.
His experience, nous and array of talents littered throughout the squad should virtually guarantee victory against a side who have blown very hot and cold so far.
France to win, 4-1.
Sweden early team news
19:55 , Arthur Ferridge
Sweden suffered a significant blow against Japan after Atalanta defender Isak Hien was injured and ruled out of the rest of the World Cup.
The centre-back had started all three of Sweden’s group games, so captain Victor Lindelof will have to drop back into defence after featuring in midfield against Japan.
Potter dropped first-choice goalkeeper Kristoffer Nordfeldt for that game, bringing in four-cap deputy Jacob Widell Zetterstrom.
He must also decide whether to keep Anthony Elanga in the starting XI. The Newcastle winger scored from the bench against the Netherlands, then started and scored against Japan.
He should join Viktor Gyokeres and Alexander Isak, who must be clinical against France if they are to have any chance of progressing.
Sweden squad: Viktor Johansson, Kristoffer Nordfelt, Jacob Widdell Zetterstrom, Hjalmar Ekdal, Gabriel Gudmundsson, Emil Holm, Gustaf Lagerbielke, Victor Nilsson Lindelof, Eric Smith, Carl Starfelt, Elliot Stroud, Daniel Svensson, Taha Ali, Yasin Ayari, Lucas Bergvall, Jesper Karlstrom, Ken Sema, Mattias Svanberg, Besfort Zeneli, Alexander Bernhardsson, Anthony Elanga, Viktor Gyokeres, Alexander Isak, Gustaf Nilsson, Benjamin Nygren
France early team news
19:45 , Arthur Ferridge
Deschamps will bring back players rested against Norway, including the likes of Arsenal defender William Saliba.
His star-studded attack is mostly very settled, with Michael Olise, Dembele and Mbappe all guaranteed to start when they are available.
France’s left side is less certain. Paris Saint-Germain pair Desire Doue and Bradley Barcola have been rotated, with Barcola starting the Iraq game, but Doue preferred against both Senegal and Norway.
Theo Hernandez also came in for Lucas Digne at left-back and may keep his place. Marcus Thuram has a slight calf issue, so is touch-and-go to feature in this one.
France squad: Mike Maignan, Robin Risser, Brice Samba, Lucas Digne, Malo Gusto, Lucas Hernandez, Theo Hernandez, Ibrahima Konate, Maxence Lacroix, Jules Kounde, William Saliba, Dayot Upamenaco, N'Golo Kante, Manu Kone, Adrien Rabiot, Aurelien Tchouameni, Warren Zaire-Emery, Maghnes Akliouche, Bradley Barcola, Rayan Cherki, Ousmane Dembele, Desire Doue, Michael Olise, Kylian Mbappe, Jean-Phillipe Mateta, Marcus Thuram
How to watch France vs Sweden
19:35 , Arthur Ferridge
TV channel: In the UK, the game will be televised live and free-to-air on ITV1, with coverage starting at 9.30pm BST.
Live stream: UK viewers can also catch the contest live online via the ITVX app or ITV website.
Live blog: You can follow all the action on matchday via Standard Sport’s live blog.
Free highlights: World Cup highlights are available on FIFA’s official YouTube channel, along with the ITVX app and BBC iPlayer.
Good evening
19:24 , Arthur Ferridge
Hello, and welcome to Standard Sport’s LIVE coverage of France vs Sweden at the World Cup!
There have already been some huge upsets in the round of 32, with the Netherlands and Germany crashing out. Will another giant tumble here?
All will be revealed! Though I wouldn’t get my hopes up...
Kick-off is at 10pm BST. Stay tuned for all the latest from MetLife Stadium!
