Kylian Mbappé, wearing a mask to protect his broken nose, came back to play in the European Championship and scored a goal against Poland.
However, France couldn’t win the match on Tuesday, and this goal doesn’t fix France’s growing issues at Euro 2024.
Mbappé took off his mask to celebrate after scoring a penalty in the 56th minute in front of his team’s supporters.
But Robert Lewandowski equalized for Poland with a penalty in the 79th minute, after taking it twice, resulting in France finishing second in Group D behind Austria. This places them in the same half of the draw as Portugal, Germany (the host nation), and Spain — all strong teams in Europe.
Austria defeated the Netherlands 3-2 in a game played simultaneously. France has yet to score a goal from open play at Euro 2024, winning 1-0 against Austria with an own goal and drawing 0-0 with the Netherlands when Mbappé was absent due to his broken nose.
While Les Bleus have progressed, their performances have not been convincing. “I would be more worried if we weren’t creating chances, but obviously there’s room for improvement,” said France coach Didier Deschamps.
“Maybe other teams have shown something different, but our lack of goals limits our performance. Nonetheless, we are where we want to be.”
Mbappé returned to the starting lineup against Poland, who were already out of contention before the game, but his performance was affected by the black mask, which restricted his peripheral vision.
He avoided physical challenges and aerial duels, often staying back around the edge of the penalty area, waiting for opportunities.
Deschamps mentioned it was “difficult” for Mbappé. “I thought he moved well with the mask — he needed time to adjust,” the coach explained. “But when he sweats, it gets into his eyes and he had to wipe them.”
Still, Mbappé remained France’s most threatening forward and finally scored his first goal in six matches at this tournament — having scored four at Euro 2020 and two at Euro 2024 — after Ousmane Dembele was fouled in the box. It was the striker’s 48th goal for France, ahead of his move to Real Madrid.
Mbappé played the entire game, starting as a center forward and later shifting to the left wing, in another disappointing performance from France — twice European champions and World Cup runners-up in 2022.
They face the Group E runners-up next, potentially Belgium, Romania, Slovakia, or Ukraine, in the round of 16 on July 1. After that, the challenge intensifies for the French. At least they advanced, unlike Poland.
Likely in his final European Championship appearance, the 36-year-old Lewandowski left a mark with a goal — though he needed two tries to beat goalkeeper Mike Maignan with his stutter-step penalty.
Maignan saved the first attempt but was penalized for coming off his line too early.
Lewandowski had another chance, used the same approach, and this time placed the ball in the bottom corner for his 83rd international goal, despite Maignan diving the correct way.
A similar situation occurred with Lewandowski against France at the World Cup, with Hugo Lloris in goal. Again, Lewandowski converted on his second attempt after Lloris encroached.
