Mbappé: I know what is expected of me

France's star striker, Kylian Mbappé, remains grounded despite his brilliant performance at the start of the 2026 World Cup. The forward netted twice in the 3-0 victory over Sweden in the Round of 16, bringing his tournament tally to 6 goals and his overall World Cup finals total to 18.

“I know what I’m playing for and what is expected of me. That goes for the entire team,” Mbappé stated immediately after the match.

“We started a bit cautiously, but then we created many chances. We could have scored the first goal earlier, but overall, we controlled the game,” the striker shared.

He also commented on his celebration after one of his goals, when he went to the touchline to embrace head coach Didier Deschamps.

“We are all in this together. The coach has been through tough times. There are more important things than football. This gesture is from the whole team; we are all with him,” Mbappé said.

“The atmosphere in the team is fantastic. We are already thinking about the next match. We must not underestimate Paraguay, who eliminated Germany,” added the French goalscorer.