Kane misses from the spot as France outmuscle England 2-1 to set up semifinal against Morocco
Powered goals from Aurelien Tchouameni and Olivier Giroud, France beat England 2-1 in the fourth quarterfinal of the 2022 World Cup at the Al Bayt Stadium.
The defending champions would take the lead in the first half following a stunning strike from Tchouameni into the bottom left corner from 25 yards out. The Les Bleus kept their lead going into the halftime.
England would equalise nine minutes into the second period after Bukayo Saka was brought down the French goalscorer Tchouameni inside the box. Harry Kane would smash the resulting spot kick to level the game.
France overcome England to secure place in the Semi-finals!@adidasfootball | #FIFAWorldCup
— FIFA World Cup (@FIFAWorldCup) December 10, 2022
France however, found a way to lead again via their all time top goalscorer Olivier Giroud, who thumped in a header off Griezmann’s cross from the left to beat Pickford with 12 minutes of regulation time left on the clock.
The Gareth Southgate managed England team were rewarded another penalty three minutes after Theo Hernandez shoved Mason Mount down inside the box. This time however, England captain Kane skied the spot kick as France saw the game through to enter the final four alongside Morocco, Argentina and the 2018 runner ups, Croatia.
“It’s extraordinary. You always have to believe. I knew I would have another opportunity and it’s great to help the team, I’m so happy. This reminds me of 2018 and we’re going to continue,” Giroud said post match.
Kyle Walker on the other hand said that even though the team were disappointed, there were positives to take from England’s performance on the night.
“It’s football, you need to put the ball in the net. We’re disappointed. The group of players we have in there is something special,” Walker said. “Look at the shots on goal. I feel the lads put in a great shift and the game plan worked well. We definitely had more possession than them. But it’s about being clinical in the box.
