France is in good hands for a while with Kylian Mbappé. Another young player, however, has plenty of ability to score world-class goals in the biggest moments.
In the 17th minute, 22-year-old Real Madrid midfielder Aurélien Tchouaméni managed to deliver a sensational strike into the corner of the net to give France a 1-0 lead against England in the marquee quarterfinal at the 2022 FIFA World Cup.
On a counterattack with England scrambling to recover defensively, Tchouaméni got the ball about 25 yards from goal in the middle of the field. With almost no approach, he let off a powerful, right-footed strike that found the corner of the net. England goalkeeper Jordan Pickford could do nothing but pick it out of his net.
France went into halftime up 1-0.
The ball went through the legs of England midfielder Jude Bellingham and swerved away from Pickford to the perfect spot.
Tchouaméni has anchored the French midfield up to this point. Only on the France U18 team when France won the 2018 World Cup, Tchouaméni has been one of the young stars of this tournament who could be a fixture on the world stage for the next decade.
In the biggest game of his career to date, he showed he’s capable of much more when the situation calls for it.
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