France 1-0 Peru: 3 things we learned

France beat Peru 1-0 on Thursday to book their place in the round of 16. Here are three things we learned from the match.

In a hard-fought game, France edged Peru by the narrowest of margins thanks to a first-half tap-in by Kylian Mbappe. Peru had chances to tie and even take the lead, but were unfortunately eliminated. What did we learn from this game?

Mbappe makes history

We knew the 19-year-old was bound to have his moment in this tournament. And in his second World Cup game, he scored to become the youngest French goalscorer in World Cup history. Paul Pogba found Olivier Giroud in behind with a clever pass, and Giroud’s shot was deflected over Pedro Gallese and into the path of Mbappe for an easy, yet historic tap-in in the 34th minute.

But it wasn’t just the goal. Mbappe gave another superb performance. He drifted inwards to allow right-back Benjamin Pavard to overlap and deliver crosses. When picking up the ball in his own half, he was able create space with his quick feet and slick movement. He did what was asked of him, and was substituted for Ousmane Dembele in the 75th minute.

Mbappe’s star keeps rising and with France now into the knockout stages, he’ll get his chance to deliver in games of bigger magnitude. The teenager has officially arrived.

Tactical switches made France better all-around

Didier Deschamps made two switches and a formation change from the previous game against Australia. He went with a 4-2-3-1, dropping Corentin Tolisso and opting for a two-man midfield of Pogba and N’Golo Kante. In a strange decision, he swapped Ousmane Dembele for Blaise Matuidi on the left flank of the attacking midfield three. Giroud lead the line with Antoine Griezmann playing as the number 10.

Despite another slow start, the decisions ultimately paid off. Kante was immense once again disrupting the flow of Peru’s attacks. Pogba had more license going forward and his interception was instrumental in giving France the lead in the first half. Deschamps must’ve seen Peru’s performance against Denmark and realized how efficient they were when they attack from the right side. That led to Matuidi playing as a defensive winger on the left to counter any threats made by the creative Peruvian combo of Andre Carillo and Luis Advincula.

The biggest beneficiary of all was Giroud, who was fantastic as the target man. His hold-up play was great, allowing Mbappe, Griezmann and Pogba to enter the play and attack the spaces he left. When Giroud plays, the team play better. France looked mighty good on the counter-attack.

Deschamps  has his detractors, and critics will still come for him as the games get bigger. While the team did suffer a dip in the second half, Matuidi offering little-to-nothing going forward, it got the job done. With Denmark next, Deschamps may opt for the same system, but with Dembele on from the start to offer more going forward.

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Peru bow out with heads held high

Amid a sea of red and white at the Ekaterinburg Arena, Peru were hoping to give their fans a memorable night. Despite the loss and elimination, the players and fans should feel proud of what they’ve done so far.

Their attacking play was spectacular and caused many problems for France. Pedro Aquino nearly scored a wonder-goal, but saw his shot smack off the post. They’ll be left wondering what could’ve been had Christian Cueva converted his penalty against Denmark in the first game. The beautiful game can be so very cruel, as Peru are now out. They’ll be looking to deny Australia in their last group stage game, while also giving their fans another memorable time.

Manager Ricardo Gareca has brought tactical stability to Los Incas. All that’s missing was the end product, something they were hoping for when Paolo Guerrero started up top. On a different day, things could’ve gone differently, but it wasn’t to be. A game that was full of promise and hope ended in unlucky heartbreak and sad faces.

It took 36 years for Peru to reach the World Cup, and seeing how they’ve fared in Russia, it won’t take another 36 to make it back. Their fans have been brilliant throughout, and the players have played with freedom, pace and were comfortable on the ball. They’ll be back.