France vs Switzerland: Mbappe Loses Penalty As Les Blues Crash Out of Euro 2020

France vs Switzerland: Mbappe Loses Penalty As Les Blues Crash Out of Euro 2020

Oluwatomiwa Babalola
updated at April 12, 2023 at 7:43 PM
  • France's dream of winning the Euro 2020 title came to an abrupt end after Switzerland sent them out of the tourney
  • Both teams produced six goals in the regulation period of the electrifying encounter in Romania on Monday night
  • PSG forward Kylian Mbappe crowned his poor performance in the game with a penalty miss

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Switzerland are through to the quarterfinals of this year's Euro 2020 Championship after beating France 5-4 on penalties at the National Arena in Romania.

Vladimir Petkovic's men confirmed their place in the last eight of the competition after PSG star man Kylian Mbappe missed Les Blues' last penalty kick of the game.

This happened after both sides ended the game on a 3-3 draw after 120 minutes with the shootouts deciding the winner.

France vs Switzerland: Karim Benzema fires Les Blues to Euro 2020 quarterfinals
Haris Seferovic with his second header as Switzerland reduced their deficit against France in the 81sy minute. Photo by Justin Setterfield
Source: Getty Images

France got the game off to a bright start with Karim Benzema was presented with his side's first chance but he failed to convert the opportunity after receiving a delivery from Antoine Griezmann in the sixth minute.

The striker was caught off guard but by the time the ball arrived and when he had regained his balance in the 18-yard box, he had been crowded by the visitors and the danger was cleared.

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However, possession switched sides as Haris Seferovic jumped over Clement Lenglet to head home a stunner from Steven Zuber's cross to hand Switzerland the lead on the quarter-hour mark.

Vladimir Petkovic’s men grew confidence along the line despite watching France kick off the game on a flashy note with a few chances created but none converted.

Didier Deschamps’ men made attempts to equalize in the 21st minute with Paul Pogba setting up Kylian Mbappe with a long pass but the Paris Saint Germain forward was flagged offside by the linesman.

The French boss resumed the second half with a back four having fielded three defenders in the opening half the result soon showed up with Benzema scoring two goals within two minutes.

His goals came about 120 seconds after Hugo Lloris made an audacious save for Les Blues in the 55th minute after stopping Ricardo Rodriguez's spot-kick from crossing his goal-line.

Benjamin Pavard had fouled Steven Zuber on the edge of the box but the referee overlooked the action until VAR awarded Switzerland a penalty with a chance to increase their tally in the game.

But the 28-year-old Torino star squandered the opportunity, leaving the game the way it was before the halftime break.

This then gave the French team the impetus the opportunity to turn the table to their favour as Karim Benzema restored parity for the world champions in the 57th minute.

Mbappe spotted the Real Madrid forward advancing into the opponent's danger zone and immediately released the pass to him. Benzema's first touch on the ball wasn't exactly superb but the forward still managed to chip the ball beyond Yann Sommer's reach.

Two minutes after his first goal, Benzema headed his side ahead for the first time in the game with Antoine Griezmann creating the assist this time around but Mbappe was part of the build-up.

And Man United midfielder Paul Pogba made it three for France in the 75th minute with a 25-yard precise curvy shot.

Stubborn Switzerland wouldn't give up as Haris Seferovic completed his brace with another superb header in the 81st minute while Mario Gavranovic completed the comeback for his side in the 90th minute.

Belgium dumped Portugal out of Euro 2020 Championship

Legit.ng earlier reported that Portugal were dumped out of Euro 2020 in the Round of 16 after suffering a 1-0 defeat in the hands of Belgium in a thrilling clash staged in Seville.

Despite being pooled in one of the toughest groups, Portugal managed to book a place in the Knockout round after securing a vital point against favourites France in their final group match.

However, their epic journey in the continental showpiece has been brought to a halt, with Thorgan Hazard's first-half wondrous strike booking the Red Devils a place in the quarter-finals.

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Oluwatomiwa Babalola
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