England vs France Live Commentary, FIFA World Cup 2022 Qatar

#	Team	P	W	D	L	GF	GA	GD	Pts
Group A
1	Netherlands	3	2	1	0	5	1	4	7
2	Senegal	3	2	0	1	5	4	1	6
3	Ecuador	3	1	1	1	4	3	1	4
4	Qatar	3	0	0	3	1	7	-6	0
Group B
1	England	3	2	1	0	9	2	7	7
2	USA	3	1	2	0	2	1	1	5
3	Iran	3	1	0	2	4	7	-3	3
4	Wales	3	0	1	2	1	6	-5	1
Group C
1	Argentina	3	2	0	1	5	2	3	6
2	Poland	3	1	1	1	2	2	0	4
3	Mexico	3	1	1	1	2	3	-1	4
4	Saudi Arabia	3	1	0	2	3	5	-2	3
Group D
1	France	3	2	0	1	6	3	3	6
2	Australia	3	2	0	1	3	4	-1	6
3	Tunisia	3	1	1	1	1	1	0	4
4	Denmark	3	0	1	2	1	3	-2	1
Group E
1	Japan	3	2	0	1	4	3	1	6
2	Spain	3	1	1	1	9	3	6	4
3	Germany	3	1	1	1	6	5	1	4
4	Costa Rica	3	1	0	2	3	11	-8	3
Group F
1	Morocco	3	2	1	0	4	1	3	7
2	Croatia	3	1	2	0	4	1	3	5
3	Belgium	3	1	1	1	1	2	-1	4
4	Canada	3	0	0	3	2	7	-5	0
Group G
1	Brazil	3	2	0	1	3	1	2	6
2	Switzerland	3	2	0	1	4	3	1	6
3	Cameroon	3	1	1	1	4	4	0	4
4	Serbia	3	0	1	2	5	8	-3	1
Group H
1	Portugal	3	2	0	1	6	4	2	6
2	Korea Republic	3	1	1	1	4	4	0	4
3	Uruguay	3	1	1	1	2	2	0	4
4	Ghana	3	1	0	2	5	7	-2	3

Matches Played

Matches Won

Matches Drawn

Matches Lost

Goals For (Goals scored by a team)

Goals Against (Goals conceded by a team)

Goal Difference

Pts

Total Points

Right, so we have our four semi-finalists. Argentina vs Croatia, and France vs Morocco. Two more teams will be knocked out over the next few days before the two winners meet in the final next Sunday. We'll be back with live coverage of all these games. Until then, this is your host, Aditya Hosangadi, signing off. Cheers, and have a good night!

I thought Southgate badly mismanaged the Euro 2020 final but he’s got far more game plans right than wrong at this World Cup and England’s performance against France vindicated his decisions.

Understandable if he wants to leave now but he’s got a strong case to continue
— Liam Twomey (@liam_twomey) December 10, 2022

Despite their undeniable brilliance tonight, England have suffered a familiar fate. Harry Kane will be gutted, but does have reason to feel pride in his achievements and those of his teammates at the World Cup. They had one of the best squads, and they were the better team tonight against the reigning champions.

France won't be perturbed by the narratives, though. They got their goals, and they've booked themselves a game against Morocco. England will have time to reflect on their performance, but they're doing well to build a golden generation of their own.

France are through to the semi-finals of the World Cup! One of the best games in the World Cup, and Les Bleus were given a serious run for their money. Olivier Giroud stepped in with a typically decisive goal, and France are now only two games away from defending their title!

Full-time: England 1-2 France

90+11' The roof of the net! Rashford is only inches away from that top corner, the finest of margins!

Marcus Rashford lining this up, with Mason Mount in contention as well. It's now or never for England..

Free-kick for England, at the edge of the box. A certain David Beckham memory comes to mind..

90+9' England with what probably is one last attack. They're scrapping for the ball in the half, with Sterling coming away with it. Harry Maguire lines up with a shot, and Kingsley Coman crashes into him.

90+7' Plenty of stoppages within stoppage-time, and we'll have a few more minutes added on. England use the time to discuss what they want to do. Whatever they come up with, they'll need to implement immediately.

90+3' Upamecano with a solid header back out to midfield. England are pinning France back in their own half, and they're need to start creating chances before they run out of time.

90+2' Fluid counter-attack from England, and their cross puts Lloris in a spot of bother. He takes no chance, palming it out for a corner.

Eight minutes of stoppage-time!

90' France happy to win their fouls now. It's Rabiot this time, turning past Bellingham and winning the free-kick. They'll get to put another ball into the box here..

89' Yellow Card for Harry Maguire, and tensions are starting to flare up here. France seem particularly unhappy with the challenge.

89' Mount takes a shot from distance, but it's well wide.

86' Giroud threatens again with his presence, but Maguire does well this time and clears.

The most dependable penalty takers do suffer lapses on big stages, and it's now Harry Kane's turn. His penalty is well over the bar, and France pull off an incredibly lucky escape.

84' HE SKIES IT! Harry Kane misses!

Now that officiating matters have been settled, Harry Kane steps up against Lloris for a second time..

Theo Hernandez gets a yellow card but his moment of madness. Bellingham's making a fairly strong case for a harsher punishment.

82' PENALTY TO ENGLAND!

The referee is having a look himself, this is going to be given..

This may well be a penalty. Slow-motion replays don't help France's case. An absolute brainfade from Hernandez - you just don't do that in the box.

80' England bomb forward, looking for an immediate response. Mason Mount is visibly shoved in the box by Hernandez, and the referee seems wholly uninterested. Blatant foul, and VAR is having a look..

You can't get a good man down, can you? Olivier Giroud and his endless expanse of mental fortitude. It's a great cross into the box, and Giroud dominates Harry Maguire aerially to score yet another World Cup goal. A brilliant cross, and Giroud inevitably steps up.

78' REDEMPTION FOR GIROUD! 2-1 to France!

77' STUNNING FROM PICKFORD! Mbappe and Dembele combine with the latter heading it back into Giroud's path, the striker tries to guide it in and Pickford gets down with an excellent save. Fine margins.

75' Chance for France! Giroud peels off the back of Luke Shaw and gets his header in, but can't direct it towards goal. France need a lot more where that came from.

72' SAKA! England create another big chance, with Luke Shaw drilling in an excellent cross. Saka is rushing onto it, but Theo Hernandez does enough to put him off.

70' MAGUIRE INCHES WIDE! Great set-piece from England, and Maguire makes excellent contact, but the ball skims the outside of the post. England agonizingly close!

69' Another foul on Saka, with Hernandez literally wrestling him to the ground. Free-kick for England, and an opportunity to put it into the box.

67' Giroud's back up now, and play resumes with France in possession.

Concern for Giroud here. He stretched to get to Tchouameni's cross, and he seems to have gotten his knee stuck in the turf.

65' A relatively quiet spell now, with both teams losing the ball in midfield a fair few times. Both coaches will contemplate substitutions, and there's plenty of quality on both benches.

60' Bukayo Saka with a great run! Drives into a pocket of space between the French lines, but his shot doesn't have enough power to trouble Lloris.

Yes, you read that right. Evisceration. Kyle Walker is one of the fastest full-backs out there, and he was no match for Mbappe's turn of pace there. France will need to hit fifth gear now.

57' Kylian Mbappe eviscerates Kyle Walker on the left flank and cuts it back, but a poor touch from Dembele takes the ball away from him. France will need to build again.

53 - Harry Kane has scored his 53rd goal for England, equalling Wayne Rooney as the joint-highest scorer for the England men's side. Leveller. pic.twitter.com/lsj2GdEk2K
— OptaJoe (@OptaJoe) December 10, 2022

55' Rabiot with a massive chance! England give the ball away poorly and Rabiot takes his shot, but Pickford does well to get down and make the save.

Get in! @HKane equals Wayne Rooney’s record. You beauty.
— Gary Lineker 💙💛 (@GaryLineker) December 10, 2022

Harry Kane buries his shot into the top corner with aplomb, and England have their equalizer! Game on!

54' HARRY KANE SCORES! 1-1!

Harry Kane steps up to take the penalty. Up against his Spurs teammate, Hugo Lloris..

52' PENALTY TO ENGLAND! Tchouameni with a blatant foul on Bukayo Saka, who's done brilliantly to dance around the French defence.

52' Saka with the cut-back! The Arsenal youngster finds space on the left and tries to find Kane, but the French defence lines up to clear.

51' Headed out by Henderson, and France build again. They seem to have diffused that early England pressure.

50' Free-kick for France, as Mbappe draws a foul from Henderson. Griezmann will likely put this in the box.

Excellent start by England, and France can't afford to be rattled for too long..

48' Another chance! Corner to the far post, and Lloris rushes towards it. Maguire heads it back into the middle, but the ball pops into Lloris' hands.

47' Oh Bellingham! That was some half-volley, and Lloris produces an acrobatic save to keep it out! Another corner for the Three Lions.

46' Yellow Card for Ousmane Dembele. Did get some of the ball with his tackle on Bellingham, but it was a touch too harsh and reckless.

The second half is underway!
England with possession, attacking from right to left.

This has already been an intriguing encounter, and the second half will inevitably have more edge-of-the-seat stuff in store for us. Back in a few minutes with the next 45.

England have improved after the goal, with Kane and Saka looking particularly threatening. France have been relatively secure at the back, but the Three Lions currently need only a moment of inspiration.

They'll need to find an equalizer quickly, though - this game will get stretched the longer it remains at this scoreline. France have Mbappe and Dembele on their flanks, and they're perfectly capable of using their pace to turn England's forward forays into foreboding nightmares. England have their work cut out for them, but they have shown themselves capable of stepping up tonight.

An excellent half of football between two good teams, but the French have drawn first blood. They dominated the first 20 minutes, and Tchouameni laid on the icing with a goal for the tournament highlight reels.

Half-time: England 0-1 France

45+4' The corner's much too deep from Foden, and France rid themselves of the danger fairly easily.

45+3' A late and arguably unnecessary corner conceded by Kounde! Can England equalize before the whistle?

Four minutes of time added to the first half!

43' Yellow Card for Griezmann. Kyle Walker advances into a dangerous position in midfield, and Griezmann chips in with a decidedly tactical foul.

40' France come up with a free-kick routine instead with Dembele and Theo Hernandez involved, and Mbappe gets a shot away! Far too much power and not enough direction, however - it soars into the crowd.

39' Mbappe with a good turn of pace, and Henderson nips at his heels. Free-kick for France, and Griezmann will look to put this into the box.

35' Good play again from the French right side, with Dembele playing Griezmann in behind. The Atletico Madrid man tries to dribble past Bellingham but loses the ball in the process.

33' England gift the ball to Mbappe, who runs at them with menace. Tries to push the ball past Kyle Walker, but the full-back does well to dispossess the Frenchman.

30' More chaos in the French box! Time almost stands still as the ball lies dead yards away from the goal, before the French defence manage to clear their lines.

29' Lloris with a good save! Kane takes a shot from distance and it takes a deflection. Lloris adjusts very well to push it out for a corner.

England have improved since they conceded their goal, with Harry Kane in particular becoming a real menace. France have visible pace all over the pitch, however, and that's starting to become a real challenge for the Three Lions.

27' No penalty! The English make their feelings heard in the stadium, but it did look like initial contact happened outside the box.

The first order of business - did the foul happen inside the box? Big moment in the match..

25' England keeping more of the ball now, and they push forward with Harry Kane. He takes a tumble in the box, and Upamecano is guilty of a pretty clumsy challenge. VAR is checking a possible penalty!

What a goal.

Real 6s are shooters, the best of them have that in their locker and what a shot that is from Tchouameni. In the fine margin games of the World Cup, that is integral.
— Umir (@umirf1) December 10, 2022

22' Chaos in the box, and France just about manage to escape! Harry Kane makes a nuisance of himself and gets into a 1v1 with Lloris. His Spurs teammate rushes out and makes himself big, however, and France are able to clear their lines.

This is the first time England have gone behind at the World Cup - this isn't a situation they're used to. A real test of character against arguably the tournament's best team.

21' On target, but too easy for Lloris. Shaw gets it in the gap in the wall, but it's straight into Lloris' arms.

Henderson and Shaw lining this up..

19' England look for an immediate response, and Saka does very well to draw a rash foul from Rabiot. Free-kick within shooting range..

You'll see very few strikes of the ball sweeter than that. France break on the counter again, with Mbappe cutting in to find Dembele. England rush back in numbers, and the counter seems all but dead before Tchouameni decides to take matters into his own hands. 35 yards from goal, takes a touch, looks up, and drills it into the bottom corner. Pickford had no chance! Brilliant, brilliant goal.

17' STUNNING FROM TCHOUAMENI! France break the deadlock, 1-0!

15' France on the counter with Rabiot! He lays it off to Mbappe who crosses to the far post, but it's a touch too heavy for Ousmane Dembele.

13' England knick the ball off Tchouameni, and Kane pushes forward. Upamecano recovers well, however, and the English will now need to build from the back.

11' Giroud, first shot on target! Lovely linkup play between Griezmann and Dembele, and the latter puts in another excellent cross. Giroud connects with his head but it's straight into Pickford's arms. France looking dangerous!

9' Dembele finds space and delivers a great cross! Stones gets a foot in and gets a crucial touch. France pile on the pressure and have now won a corner.

7' Giroud attempts the spectacular! Tries to connect with Mbappe's cross with a uniquely distorted scorpion kick, but doesn't make contact. That would've been some goal.

We're only six minutes in, and this is already packed with action. This game has all the makings of an all-time classic!

6' Set-piece for England, Luke Shaw steps up and crosses into the box, but Upamecano clears his lines comfortably.

Open start, hopefully setting up a thriller.
— Miguel Delaney (@MiguelDelaney) December 10, 2022

4' Early mistakes from France! They give it away to Foden in their own half, but his shot from the edge of the box is well-blocked.

3' France with some early possession and neat touches, they're looking incisive. Mbappe and Dembele have both got touches in these opening exchanges.

1' And immediately, there's an issue with the ball, and Harry Maguire kicks it out. The ball is changed, and Dembele throws it back to Pickford.

KICK-OFF!
France get things underway, attacking from right to left.

A massive roar goes through the crowd as the players step up onto the pitch. Seconds away from kick-off now..

Everyone is focusing on Mbappe vs Walker ahead of France vs England tonight. But I feel like one thing that’s gone under the radar is Dembélé up against Luke Shaw, now that could be very interesting!
— TalkFCB © (@talkfcb_) December 10, 2022

In terms of sheer drama and spectacle, this World Cup has been unlike any other. We've seen upsets, hostile encounters, and historic storylines that have brimmed with unbridled passion. This fixture also has its own share of narratives.

No country has defended its World Cup title since an all-conquering Brazil side pulled it off in 1962. France could potentially become the first team in 60 years to achieve the feat.
As for England, an all-too-familiar phrase rears its head as they pursue glory - will it finally come home? Only time will.

Right, we move to the Al Bayt Stadium, where the players are lining up for the anthems!

Phil Foden starts ahead of Marcus Rashford for this game, with Jordan Henderson retaining his place in the side after an impressive performance against Senegal.

Much has been made of Kyle Walker's battle with Kylian Mbappe, and that'll be some battle to watch. Some pundits have gone as far as to say that Mbappe is the only threat to the English team tonight. Make no mistake - Dembele, Griezmann, and Giroud are no slouches. This game may well become one of the games of the tournament.

France have named a fairly predictable starting XI, with Mbappe and Dembele playing off Giroud up front. Antoine Griezmann remains their high-pressing midfielder, and he'll need to play a crucial role against Bellingham and Rice.

England XI (4-3-3):
Jordan Pickford; Kyle Walker, Harry Maguire, John Stones, Luke Shaw; Declan Rice, Jude Bellingham, Jordan Henderson; Phil Foden, Bukayo Saka, Harry Kane

France XI (4-2-3-1):
Hugo Lloris; Dayot Upamecano, Raphael Varane, Theo Hernandez, Jules Kounde; Adrien Rabiot, Aurelien Tchouameni; Antoine Griezmann, Ousmane Dembele, Kylian Mbappe; Olivier Giroud

Substitutes:

England:
Jack Grealish, Raheem Sterling, Marcus Rashford, Kieran Trippier, Nick Pope, Kalvin Phillips, Eric Dier, Conor Coady, Trent Alexander-Arnold, Mason Mount, Aaron Ramsdale, Callum Wilson, James Maddison, Conor Gallagher

France:
Axel Disasi, Benjamin Pavard, Matteo Guendouzi, Randal Kolo Muani, Youssouf Fofana, Jordan Veretout, Steve Mandanda, William Saliba, Kingsley Coman, Alphonse Areola, Ibrahima Konate, Eduardo Camavinga, Marcus Thuram

The lineups are here!

If you go by history, these two countries have no love lost between them. While recent times have seen their rivalry dissipate and be consigned to the past, rules on the football field will dictate and demand a battle.

Hello, and welcome to Sportskeeda's live coverage of the World Cup quarterfinal fixture between England and France - arguably the two most in-form teams in the tournament so far. I'm Aditya Hosangadi, your commentator for the evening, and we should be in for an exciting game of cat and mouse between two genuinely world-class teams tonight.

Date & Time

11 December, Sun 12:30 AM IST

Tournament

FIFA World Cup

Stadium

Al Bayt Stadium

POLL :

POLL : Which team will win?

Head To Head Summary

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Highlights

England vs France 1-2: Official Match Highlights

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POLL : Which team will win?

Match Details

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