Kylian Mbappé scored the only goal from the penalty spot as France defeated Paraguay 1-0 in the World Cup round of 16 in Philadelphia on Saturday.
Paraguay's physical tactics presented France with a difficult problem to solve, but eventually Mbappé had the final say with a second-half penalty.
With an extreme heat warning in effect throughout the match as temperatures hovered around 100 degrees Fahrenheit (38 Celsius), Mbappé finally broke through against a defensive-minded Paraguay side when he converted a penalty kick in the 70th minute.
Diego Gómez's knee collided with the onrushing Désiré Doué, and with the aid of VAR, the referee pointed to the spot. Mbappé converted to open the scoring in the 70th-minute.
"I told my players, 'If we have played their game we won't win'," France coach Didier Deschamps said. "I told them, 'No gestures, no reactions.' We had three yellows already. I am calm and collected, if the bench is calm and collected, it helps."
France will next face Morocco in the quarterfinal Thursday at Gillette Stadium in Foxborough, Massachusetts. Morocco eliminated co-hosts Canada with a 3-0 win earlier on Saturday.
Mbappé botched a breakaway attempt in the second half, and Manu Koné had his top-corner shot knocked away by Paraguay goalkeeper Orlando Gill after he was wiped out in the netting by Ousmane Dembélé only moments earlier.
Gill also stopped two serious attempts by Mbappé in second-half stoppage time.
Mbappé's penalty was his seventh goal of the 2026 World Cup, drawing him level with Argentina's Lionel Messi in the race for the Golden Boot. He is still one behind Messi's record of 20 all-time goals at the World Cup.
He might have drawn level with Messi but, with two minutes remaining, his long-range shot was batted away by goalkeeper Orlando Gill. Then in stoppage time, Gill twice brilliantly denied Mbappé in quick succession.
Mbappé and Messi are the only players with at least seven goals at two different World Cups.
Mbappé won the Golden Boot four years ago in Qatar, but Messi and Argentina beat France in the final.
Norway's Erling Haaland and England's Harry Kane are next in the 2026 Golden Boot race with five goals each.
For the criticism that hydration breaks have watered down the pace of play at the World Cup, they were never more needed for the players than in the midst of a miserable heat wave. Sprinklers showered the Kentucky bluegrass field during the breaks and at halftime.
More than in any of the five other World Cup games played before 68,000-plus fans at Lincoln Financial Field, spectators fled for the concourse at halftime, seeking shade and refuge from the sun.
Information from The Associated Press contributed to this report.
