The defending champions began their World Cup defence with an emphatic win against Australia.
Les Blues would’ve been determined to right the wrongs of Korea/Japan 2002. Back then, the French produced the worst title defence in the tournament’s history as they failed to score a single goal.
It wasn’t all smooth sailing as the Socceroos took the lead in under 10 minutes as Craig Goodwin shot into the roof of the net. It didn’t end there as the build-up to the goal saw defender Lucas Hernandez injure himself. An injury that would force him out of the game.
However, the lead for Australia didn’t last long as France hit back with two quick goals in under five minutes. Adrien Rabiot got them back level with a well-taken header and then Olivier Giroud added a second following a defensive mishap. It was more of the same for France in the second half as Kylian Mbappe joined in on the goalscoring action before Giroud added his second with a brilliant header to complete the rout.
The two goals from Olivier Giroud meant he’s now tied with Thierry Henry as France’s all-time goalscorer with 51 goals. At 36 years and 53 days old, Giroud also became the second-oldest player in World Cup history to score two goals in the same game. Cameroon’s Roger Milla did so at 38 years old back in 1990 to take the top spot on that list.
Up next for France is a mouth-watering clash against Denmark on Saturday, while Australia will aim to bounce back when they tackle Tunisia on the same day.
