Who would’ve thought that France’s 1-0 win against Paraguay would end with a massive fight? The win didn’t come easy for the French players, as they had to go through a rough game and take hits without any cards being shown. And the worst part is that it didn’t stop even after the match.

After the final whistle, emotions ran high as players from both France and Paraguay argued on the pitch. The fight was fueled by several incidents. As per a YouTube video from BPC Media late in stoppage time, Paraguay midfielder Matías Galarza reportedly punched France defender Jules Koundé in the face, but the VAR officials seem to have missed it.

After the match ended, several Paraguay players surrounded Kylian Mbappé, accusing him of getting favorable decisions from the referee. French players, including Michael Olise and Jules Koundé, quickly stepped in to protect Mbappé, and both teams pushed and argued before the situation was finally brought under control.

In the 70th minute, France substitute Désiré Doué ran into Paraguay’s penalty box with the ball. Paraguay midfielder Diego Gómez stretched out his leg and tripped Doué, causing him to fall. Referee Ilgiz Tantashev did not give a penalty before watching the incident again on the pitch-side monitor following a VAR review.

Kylian Mbappé took the penalty and calmly kicked the ball into the bottom corner of the net, beating Paraguay goalkeeper Orlando Gill. The goal gave France a 1-0 lead and sent France to the quarter-finals. This was also the reason behind Paraguay’s players’ frustration against Mbappe after the game.

But do Paraguay players really have the right to question Mbappe? Throughout the game, they made life difficult for him.

In the 35th minute, the match became heated as Paraguay’s Andrés Cubas made a hard tackle on Kylian Mbappé and knocked him to the ground. Mbappé quickly got up and pushed Cubas, after which players from both teams rushed in, leading to a brief argument before the referee stepped in.

Later in the match, Paraguay’s Matías Galarza hit Mbappé with his right elbow. Despite visible physical action, no red card was shown.  Then, in the 40th minute during a corner kick, Paraguay defender Juan Cáceres appeared to hold Kylian Mbappé inside the penalty box, causing him to fall. Mbappé immediately appealed for a penalty, but the referee decided not to give it, and play continued.

In the 77th minute, Paraguay defender Juan José Cáceres kicked Kylian Mbappé on his right shin. Even though Mbappé was fouled several times during the match, the referee did not show a yellow card for this.

Gabriel Ávalos hit Dayot Upamecano with his elbow in the stomach during the match. Even after that foul, the referee did not show a yellow card to any Paraguayan. What’s shocking is that despite playing a rough game throughout, Paraguay did not get a yellow card during normal play; instead, France received all three yellow cards shown during the game.

Referees also missed Mbappe’s fouls. As per an X post from match analyst Appie Cule, Mbappé argued with a Paraguay player during the match and also spent about 10 seconds shouting insults at the player in Spanish while covering his mouth. But no cards were shown.

But this is still far less than what the Paraguay players did to the French players. And the physical battle continued even after the final whistle.

Another reason adding to the tension after the game

The fight was also fueled by several other incidents. After the game, Paraguay goalkeeper Orlando Gill tried to shake Mbappé’s hand, but Mbappé walked past him without responding. Gill then lost his temper and threw the ball at Mbappé’s back.

“We knew what kind of match it was going to be,” Mbappe said after the game. “We can also get our hands dirty; we know how to do it. We know how to play ugly football. Guess they were thinking we were going to show up in tuxedos, but we were ready. Even at that kind of game, we were better than them. That’s their style of football. There’s no right or wrong way to play the game. They tried to beat us that way, but we won.”

Despite their harsh game, the team did not manage a single shot on target during the entire match, so France goalkeeper Mike Maignan did not have to make even one save. Paraguay also struggled to keep the ball. The team completed only 54% of its passes, meaning almost half of its passes did not reach a teammate. That is the lowest passing accuracy by any team in a World Cup knockout match in the last 60 years.

So, despite putting in all efforts to give a tough physical fight, Paraguay couldn’t win the game, and that’s what made them more furious.