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France needed a second-half Kylian Mbappe penalty to finally unlock a stubborn Paraguay side on Sunday, scraping a gritty 1-0 victory in a tetchy World Cup last-16 showdown that books a quarter-final date with Morocco.

Paraguay’s plan to rattle France’s galaxy of stars worked for three-quarters of a bruising contest played before 68,324 sweaty souls in Philadelphia’s sweltering heatwave.

But class eventually told, with Mbappe converting from the spot in the 70th minute after Desire Doue off the bench was clumsily brought down.

This was not an attacking masterclass by the French like they had produced in their previous games, but Paraguay did not allow them to play that way.

It was very much a mismatch, though, with Les Bleus having almost all of the ball and Paraguay not managing a shot on target until the 90th minute.

Mbappe’s brilliant World Cup on a personal level continued as he rejoined Lionel Messi as the tournament’s joint-top scorer with seven goals.

The Real Madrid striker now has 19 World Cup goals from just 19 appearances, leaving him only one shy of Messi’s overall record of 20.

Didier Deschamps’ team will now return to their Boston base to prepare for a last-eight clash in nearby Foxborough next Thursday against the Moroccans, who beat Canada 3-0 earlier.

It was a sweltering day in Philadelphia, with temperatures of 38 degrees Celsius (100 Fahrenheit) and extreme weather warnings in place in case of storms.

France had practically all of the ball but struggled to do anything with it, being restricted to shots from long range.

Manu Kone had one attempt deflected just wide midway through the first half and another tipped over by Orlando Gill not long after the restart.

• South Africa vs Canada: Stephen Eustaquio scored the winner in the second minute of stoppage time with a superb low volley to seal a dramatic victory.
• The 1-0 triumph sent co-hosts Canada into the FIFA World Cup Round of 16 while eliminating Bafana Bafana from the tournament.
• Canada will now face the winner of the Netherlands vs Morocco clash in the Round of 16.

Stephen Eustaquio scored a dramatic stoppage-time winner as co-hosts Canada stunned resilient South Africa 1-0 to eliminate them from the 2026 FIFA World Cup, booking their place in the Round of 16.

It took everything from Canada, who squandered chances in both halves, until the 92nd minute to finally breach South Africa’s stubborn defense.

The visitors sat deep, perhaps hoping to force penalties, having already made history by reaching the knockout stage for the first time. But it was the host nation that snatched the win and cruised into the last 16.

Canada will now prepare to face the winner between the Netherlands and Morocco in the Round of 16 next week.

Canada dominated possession and created promising opportunities throughout the match. One of the best chances came in the first half when they won a free-kick on the left flank, about 35 metres from goal.

Eustaquio delivered a perfect cross into the box, with Derek Cornelius rising unmarked in the area.

All he needed was to direct his header either side of a scrambling Ronwen Williams, but instead he nodded it straight at the goalkeeper as the game remained cagey.

Just a minute before halftime, Canada earned their third corner of the match. Eustaquio swung the ball in from the left, and Moise Bombito met it with a header that was brilliantly cleared off the line by Aubrey Modiba.

The danger was not over as the loose ball dropped invitingly inside the six-yard box. Tani Oluwaseyi and Alistair Johnston both tried to force it home, but Williams produced another outstanding smothering save at his near post to deny the Canadians yet again.

Four minutes after the hour mark, Sigur played a brilliant pass to Oluwaseyi, who burst through the left inside channel.

With a defender closing him down, he attempted to beat the advancing Williams. The goalkeeper made the save, sending the rebound looping towards Jonathan David, but Mbekezeli Mbokazi recovered superbly to hold off the striker before hooking the ball away for a corner.

It was a magnificent piece of defending that denied Canada what looked like a certain goal. The resulting corner was floated into the area, but South Africa managed to clear the danger once more.