They overcame France in the ultimate game of two halves in the bronze final of the FIFA World Cup. Player of the Match Bukayo Saka hit a hat-trick, and Jude Bellingham finally put an end to a comeback Kylian Mbappe had heroically inspired at Miami Stadium.

England annihilated France in the first half. Declan Rice stylishly struck home the opener from outside the box and, after Saka had a goal ruled out for offside, Ezri Kosna made it two. Saka then bagged a quick-fire brace to send Thomas Tuchel’s team in 4-0 up at the break.

Mbappé

But France came out swinging in the second half. Michael Olise’s pass enabled Mbappé to get them on the board, and the Real Madrid forward set up Bradley Barcola to further decrease the deficit. 

Mbappé then pulled Les Bleus within one, before Olise came narrowly close to rounding off a breathtaking team move and equalising.

France and England competed in the World Cup bronze final. Photo: X/Manchester City

England were under extreme pressure, but Saka gave them breathing space from the spot after Malo Gusto had tripped Djed Spence. It appeared to finally extinguish the comeback, only for Ousmane Dembélé to get France within one again. 

England’s player of the tournament had the final say, though, Bellingham dribbling past multiple bodies to seal victory in one of the greatest matches the World Cup has ever seen.

It was a 10-goal thriller in Miami. Photo: X/Fabrizio Romano

It was England’s best finish at the global finals since they triumphed on home soil in 1966.

Mbappé also made history by hitting ten goals in eight outings in North America. The only men with more in a World Cup are Sandor Kocsis with eleven for Hungary in 1954 and Just Fontaine with 13 for France in 1958.

After the match, France’s coach Didier Deschamps said he was disappointed with the loss, but relished the experience.

‘It’s not all a total loss’

“We came here with a lot of ambition. We managed to do quite a few positive things. We fell short in our match against Spain. It’s not all a total loss. We have a quality squad, young players who will continue to move up the ranks. We had the talent to keep achieving very good results. 

“On a personal level, it’s been a truly wonderful journey with them. We spent eight weeks together since the start of our preparations. It was wonderful. 

“The disappointment lies in the sporting aspect, but we had the opportunity to stir up emotions, and millions of French people were able to experience those emotions. It’s the World Cup – there’s nothing more beautiful than that.”

OFM Sport/Ilse Smalberger dg