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The Three Lions were handed a first-class ticket back home after they fell narrowly to Les Blues in their World Cup Quarter-final clash on Saturday.
England faced defending world champions France in the Quarterfinals of the 2022 FIFA World Cup on Saturday, December 10, 2022, at the iconic Al Bayt stadium.
The Three Lions were looking to secure qualification into the semi-finals where they would face Morocco who had already defeated Portugal earlier on Saturday.
But it was France who opened the scoring despite England’s domination in possession in the opening stages. Aurelien Tchouameni fired home for Les Blues from 25 yards out to give the defending champions a 1-0 lead in the 17th minute.
England sought to launch a quick fire response and created some dangerous chances for themselves three minutes later.
Luke Shaw forced a save from Hugo Lloris from a free-kick at the edge of the box before Harry Kane’s shot was brilliantly saved by the French goalkeeper again.
England thought they had an opportunity to score after Harry Kane was adjudged to have been fouled in the box. But after a long VAR check, the calls from the Three Lions players was dismissed as play continued.
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England came close again in the 29th minute after Harry Kane forced another save from Hugo Lloris who always looked up to the task.
France came close to doubling their lead in the 39th minute after Theo Hernandez played Kylian Mbappe through on goal, but the PSG superstar saw his effort from inside the box sail wide of the post in a good position.
However, the Three Lions couldn’t find a way to break down the French defense after 45 minutes of action as they went into the break trailing by a slender lead against Les Blues.
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The second half resumed and it was more of the same from both teams who desperately needed all three points by the end of the encounter.
However, in the 52nd minute, Tchouameni was penalized for a foul in the box, which handed England a real goalscoring opportunity as referee Wilton Sampalo pointed to the spot.
Two minutes later, Harry Kane stepped up and made no mistake against his Tottenham teammate and France goalkeeper Hugo Lloris to level matters for the Three Lions.
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In the 60th minute, England came close to taking the lead for the first time in the game after Bukayo Saka’s individual effort was saved by Lloris once more after a darting run into the box.
And England continued to press for the lead soon after, as Harry Kane yet again tested Hugo Lloris with a shot from just outside the box. But the France skipper was up to the task on that occasion.
However, in the 78th minute, France went ahead again after a beautiful header from Olivier Giroud to put Les Blues 2-1 up.
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But their joy nearly shortlived once more after Mason Mount went down in the box in the 80th minute.
After a VAR review, referee Wilton Sampaio pointed to the spot to award England another chance to level matter. Harry Kane stepped up in the 84th minute and this time blazed his effort off the crossbar to deny England a golden chance to level matters with just 6 minutes to go until the 90th minute.
In the end, the reigning champions held for a crucial 2-1 win against England and are now set to face Morocco in the semifinals of the World Cup on Wednesday, December 14, 2022.
Social Media Reactions
Following the result on Saturday here's how fans have reacted on social media. Screenshots below:
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