♦ France drew 1-1 with Poland to finish second in Group D
♦ Mbappe scored a second-half penalty to open his Euros account
♦ Austria seal top spot after surprise 3-2 win over Netherlands
Kylian Mbappe opened his European Championship account from the penalty spot on Tuesday, but it wasn’t enough to seal top spot for France as their 1-1 draw with Poland saw Les Bleus fall to second place in Group D.
Despite his ludicrous record at the World Cup – 12 goals in 14 games – Mbappe headed into the meeting with Poland still on the hunt for his first Euros goal, although that is largely due to France’s poor performance in the competition during his international career.
Indeed, while this was Mbappe’s 80th cap for France, it was just his sixth appearance at the Euros. Les Bleus flopped at Euro 2020, tumbling out at the group stage, while even this summer’s tournament got off to a slow start and even saw Mbappe sidelined with a broken nose.
Sporting a protective mask, Mbappe came out determined to make an impact and, after Didier Deschamps’ side dominated the first half, the breakthrough came shortly after the break when the excellent Ousmane Dembele went down in the box.
Sensing there would be no greater chance to bag his first Euros goal, Mbappe stepped up to the spot and duly converted, whipping his mask off in celebration.
Mbappe slotted home from the spot / OZAN KOSE/GettyImage
France would, however, come undone with ten minutes to go as Robert Lewandowski slotted home a penalty of his own, having been granted a retake after Mike Maignan left his line early to save the Barcelona striker’s initial effort.
With Austria stunning the Netherlands 3-2 and finishing top of the group, France had to settle for second place, having won just one of their three group games.
France are yet to live up to expectations this summer. They had an own goal to thank for their win over Austria and went goalless in a draw with the Netherlands, before their solitary strike against Poland came from the penalty spot.