WORLD CUP 2018: France vs Peru, LIVE

So, France have done the job, but in a hard way. They defended really well, and got the goal that they needed. They are now through to the knock out stage. This result also means that Peru have been knocked out of the tournament.

France played better today than they did against Australia, but only better. They took the lead through Mbappe, who scored after some brilliant work from Pogba and Giroud. The 20-year-old became the youngest French player to score at a World Cup or European competition.

In the second half, Peru were all over the French defense, but lacked the final product. Aquino hit the post in the 50th minute, but that was the only clear cut chance they managed. France keeper Lloris had to make a couple of straightforward saves. 
 

FULL TIME: France 1-0 Peru

90' + 4': Giroud tries to get a goal from himself after a brilliant run, but it is blocked for a corner.
 

90': Four minutes have been added on!
 

89': France make their final change. Nzonzi gets his first taste of World Cup action, as he replaces Pogba.
 

88': Guerrero takes the set-piece, but it's straight at Lloris, who gladly catches the ball in his hand.
 

86': Free kick for Peru, and a yellow card for Pogba, much to his astonishment! He jumps for a ball in the air, but his trailing hand catches Farfan on the face. 
 

84': Corner for Peru, as they get desperate to find a goal.
 

82': WIDE! France get a free kick, and it's played in the box. Giroud heads it down for Dembele, who takes two touches, and shoots. But his effort is wide. Meanwhile, Peru make their final change. Cueva departs for Ruidaz. Also, Aquino got a yellow for the foul. Initially, the referee had booked Flores.
 

80': Second substitution by France. Just like the last match, Griezmann is replaced by Fekir.
 

75': First change by France. Goal scorer Mbappe is taken off, Dembele comes in his place.
 

74': Finally another chance for Peru! Carrillo is open on the right side, and puts in a cross towards Farfan. The No.10 tries an acrobatic effort, but it hits the side-netting.
 

70': It's said 70 per cent of earth is covered by water, and rest by Ngolo Kante. Well, it should be otherwise looking at his performance today. The diminutive midfielder has been exceptional.
 

68': Pass and pass and pass and pass. Advincula has had enough of it, and decides to go solo. He shifts the ball onto his left foot, and goes for goal. But his effort is high.
 

66': It's all Peru at the moment. They are dominating the ball, and France are happy to set back. Apart from Giroud, everyone is deep in their own half.
 

64': A defeat for Peru would knock them out of the tournament, and will confirm the qualification of France for the next round.
 

61': Peru keep on probing around the France goal, but to no effect. But they don't lose hope, and keep the possession. The ball is played to the feet of Carrillo, and he takes a effort from 30 yards out, but it's over.
 

56': Corner for France, and Mbappe takes it. His delivery is right in the middle, and the goalkeeper makes a mess of it. Luckily for him, his defender were there to clear.
 

52': Free kick for France on the left side. Guerrero tussles with Hernandez, and after he loses the ball, fouls him.
 

50': OFF THE POST! Farfan is in the thick of the action, as he lays the ball towards Aquino. The midfielder takes a first time effort from 25 yards out, but it hits the post and goes out.
 

49': After a two-minute delay, we are back underway. France have the ball, and have a throw-in.
 

47': And the No.10 is straight away into action, but for the wrong reason. He challenges Umtiti for a ball in the air, but his knee catches the defender. The Barcelona man is down, and looks in pain.
 

46': That's a very attacking change made by Gareca. Farfan is a forward, and he replaces a midfielder.
 

Peru are set to make a change. Farfan is prepared to come on, and he replaces Yotun. Oh wait! There is another. Santamaria also joins in, replacing Rodriguez.
 

Kylian Mbappe became the youngest France player to score in a mega tournament. His 35th minute tap-in means France head into the break a goal up. While they have been better than the last match, a lot of improvements are still needed. Griezmann hasn been very ordinary, and Matuidi hasn't been involved at all. Even Mbappe, despite scoring the goal, has been quite anonymous.
 

HALF TIME: France 1-0 Peru
 

45': Two minutes added on!
 

43': Good save! Some brilliant play across the park by France results in the ball reaching to left back Hernandez, who is free in the opposition penalty area. His effort is well saved by Gallese. The rebound falls to the full back, but he hits it wide.
 

39': Another chance for France! Griezmann is free through the middle, and slides a low pass towards Giroud. But the goalkeeper clings onto the ball before the striker could get a touch.
 

35': GOAL! Mbappe makes amends for his earlier mess. Giroud's effort takes a big deflection of the defender, and loops over the goalkeeper. An onrushing Mbappe taps the ball into an open net to give his side the lead. France 1-0 Peru
 

34': What a pass by Pogba! The midfielder plays an unbelievable chipped ball over the defense. All Mbappe needs to do is get a touch to it, but he makes a mess of it.
 

31': Good save by Lloris! Cueva gets the free on the left, and plays a beautiful pass to Guerrero in the box. The Peru skipper takes one touch and shoots. But his effort is well saved by the France captain.
 

28': The front three of France have been anonymous, just like the last match. Barring a couple of moments, none of the three have been in the game.
 

24': Flores has a go from 25 yards out, but it's well wide.
 

23': Yellow card for Guerrero! He is initially fouled by Umtiti, but gets involved with a scuffle with him. Unnecessary by the Peru captain.
 

20': Free kick for Peru on the left hand side. Yotun delivers the ball in the box, but referee has already blown the whistle for a foul on Umtiti. Also, Carrillo has shifted wings. He is now operating from the left.
 

16': Griezmann has a go from 20 yards out with his right foot, but the goalkeeper makes a decent save. Peru try to counter through Carrillo, but he is halted near the halfway line by Matuidi, who gets the first booking of the match.
 

15': Shouts for penalty! Mbappe plays a one-two with Giroud, and goes into the penalty box. But under pressure, he falls down, and asks for a penalty. But the referee isn't interested.
 

14': Corner for France on the left side. Griezmann to take it. It's not the best of the deliveries, and the ball is headed for another corner. The resulting delivery is a better one, and Varane heads it just wide.
 

12': Just wide! Pogba has a speculative effort from 30 yards out, and while it's wide of the post, the goalkeeper scrambles across his goal.
 

11': Griezmann has a chance, but he blazes it wide. Giroud tries to wriggle past the defense, and the loose ball falls to Griezmaann on his right foot. He goes in th box and shoots, but it's wide.
 

9': Brilliant play from Carrillo on the wing. He beats Hernandez with a dazzling skill, and puts in a decent cross in the box. But Guerrero is the only attacker in the area, and the ball goes over him.
 

5': France are yet to get going in this match. A couple of times the ball has been played long towards Giroud, but the striker is unable to hold onto the ball for long.
 

2': Peru have started very aggressively here. Twice the ball has gone to the right side, where Carrillo is one on one against Hernandez.
 

KICK OFF!
 

Just 15 mins to go before the match begins.
 

Here's how both the teams will ine-up.
 

Fans coming in huge numbers for the World Cup.
 

Here's how the two teams line up.
 

Two changes for France from their previous match. Dembele and Tolisso make way for Giroud and Matuidi.
 

France were very ordinary in their first match against Australia, but somehow managed to scrape a 2-1 win. Antoine Griezmann scored one goal, but was very much anonymous for the rest of the match. Same could be said of the other two forwards, Kylian Mbappe and Ousmane Dembele. The 1998 winners will again look upon the influential Paul Pogba against a tough Peru side. 

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The first round of fixtures of World Cup 2018 have ended, and they sprung in quiet a few surprises. Many of the teams, who headed into the tournament as favorites, were given harsh reality check. As for the underdogs, they have lit up the tournament with their heartwarming displays.

Russia kicked of the tournament with a thumping 5-0 win over Saudi Arabia in the first match of the competition. The other match in the Group A saw Uruguay beat Egypt 1-0 thanks to a late late goal by Jose Gimenez.

The Group B saw real excitement in the very first game, which arguably turned out to be the match of the tournament. UEFA Euro 2016 winners Portugal and World Cup 2010 champions Spain ended 3-3, and had every element of drama and action in it..Cristiano Ronaldo was the star of the show, scoring a hat-trick, as he brought his team back from death to salvage a point. 

In the other match of their group, Iran narrowly defeated Morocco 1-0.

One of the front-runners to claim the trophy, France were frustrated by Australia in a thrilling encounter, but they came out victorious 2-1 to a 80th minute own goal. There wasn't similar luck for Argentina and Brazil in their respective groups,as they were held to a 1-1 draw by Iceland and Switzerland respectively.

The shocker of the tournament came in the form of Germany's 1-0 defeat to Mexico. The 2014 champions were outplayed and outperformed by the South American side.

In Group G, Belgium comfortably beat debutantes Panama 3-0, but England needed a stoppage time winner to overcome a stubborn Tunisia side. 

The final day of the first round of fixtures saw the biggest upsets. 2014's fairytale team Colombia were stunned 2-1 by Japan. And following that match, Poland, led by Robert Lewandowski, were surprisingly beaten 2-1 by Senegal.