England produced a ruthless first-half display to defeat France 6-4 in the World Cup third-place match Saturday in Miami, United States of America
Declan Rice opened the scoring in the third minute with a delightful curling strike from outside the box. Ezri Konsa doubled England’s lead with a precise header from a corner in the 18th minute before Bukayo Saka struck twice in quick succession to give England a commanding advantage at the interval.
France came flying out of the gate after the break, and Kylian Mbappe scored his ninth goal of the tournament in the 48th minute to move clear of Lionel Messi at the top of the World Cup Golden Boot race. Bradley Barcola then added France’s second to keep the pressure on England, before Mbappe completed his brace with a stunning shot in the 66th minute to become the World Cup’s all-time leading scorer.
Les Bleus continued to pile on the pressure, but Saka – who didn’t come off the bench in the semifinal against Argentina – converted a penalty in the 87th minute to complete his hat-trick and put the result beyond doubt.
The triumph marks England’s best finish at a World Cup since it won the tournament in 1966.
