‘Angry’ Kylian Mbappe shoves his opponent as ‘special’ Paraguay ‘gets under the skin’ of France in the last 16 match

France international Kylian Mbappe pushed Andres Cubas to start the big clash as Paraguay held on to ensure their last 16 clash against the tournament favorites goes to the quarter-finals in Philadelphia.

Vancouver Whitecaps midfielder Cubas took Mbappe down for six near the Paraguayan penalty area, prompting the Real Madrid striker to poke him in the chest before several players from both sides clashed.

“It’s an obvious mistake by Cubas,” former England defender Stephen Warnock told BBC Sport. “I don’t know how it’s not a yellow card, actually.

“They are under [France’s] skin. That’s exactly what they want. They want that reaction. They want revenge. It means that France is frustrated.”

France vs Paraguay: Mbappe is ‘upset’ at the World Cup

Paraguay took four points from their group before edging out Germany on penalties but were huge underdogs against a Bleus side who have scored 13 goals in their opening four wins.

Cubas, who was seen joking with Mbappe shortly afterwards, wasn’t the only Paraguayan player to take offense to the 27-year-old, who started the game one goal behind top scorer Lionel Messi.

“It’s not like Kylian Mbappe to be frustrated, but it’s the wrong way,” Warnock said, calling Paraguay’s defensive decision “unique” and adding that head coach Gustavo Alfaro “can only dream” and is “hopeful” about his team’s first-half display.

“It slows down the game. It frustrates the French. Mbappe would not let the referee be the only one to say about it.”

“That will make Paraguay happy, because it knows that France is offended by the measures.”

World Cup 2026: Paraguay team vs France

Diego Gomez has returned from suspension as one of the new trio in Paraguay’s lineup alongside Gustavo Velazquez and Omar Alderrete.

Jose Canale, Damian Bobadilla and Gabriel Avalos moved to the bench.

Paraguay starting XI: Orlando Gill, Gustavo Velazquez, Omar Alderrete, Juan Jose Caceres, Junior Alonso, Gustavo Gomez, Diego Gomez, Miguel Almiron, Andres Cubas, Matias Galarza, Julio Enciso

Substitutes for Paraguay: Gatito Fernandez, Gaston Olveira, Fabian Balbuena, Jose Canale, Alexandro Maidana, Ramon Sosa, Mauricio, Damian Bobadilla, Braian Ojeda, Gustavo Caballero, Antonio Sanabria, Alejandro Romero Gamarra, Alex Arce, Gabriel Avalos, Isidro Pitta

World Cup 2026: Team France vs Paraguay

Manu Kone replaced Aurelien Tchouameni, who had a groin problem, in France’s lone change in their elimination of Sweden in the last 32.

France starting XI: Mike Maignan, Lucas Digne, Dayot Upamecano, Jules Kounde, William Saliba, Manu Kone, Adrien Rabiot, Ousmane Dembele, Kylian Mbappe, Michael Olise, Bradley Barcola

France instead: Brice Samba, Robin Risser, Malo Gusto, Ibrahima Konate, Theo Hernandez, Lucas Hernandez, Maxence Lacroix, Aurelien Tchouameni, Ngolo Kante, Warren Zaire-Emery, Rayan Cherki, Maghnes Akliouche, Marcus Thuram, Desire Doue, Jean-Philippe Mateta

Where to watch Paraguay vs France: TV channel, live streaming online

Kick-off on Saturday was at 22:00 BST (17:00 ET / 14:00 PT). In the UK, live TV broadcasts on BBC One.

Live streaming on multiple devices is available via the BBC iPlayer app and the BBC Sport website.

World Cup 2026: Paraguay vs France statistics

• Michael Olise has five assists in the final in France and is one short of equaling Pele’s World Cup record of six in one competition.
• France have won 15 of their 18 World Cup matches since the start of the 2018 tournament
• Didier Deschamps recorded 18 World Cup victories as a manager, the most in the tournament’s history
• Deschamps, now 57, was captain when France beat Paraguay in the last 16 en route to the 1998 final, winning 1-0 thanks to Laurent Blanc’s goal in the 113th minute.
• Paraguay had won once before winning the World Cup, winning 5-3 on penalties against Japan in the last 16 of 2010.
• La Albirroja has lost one of four matches at the 2026 World Cup, but they have not beaten France in the last five meetings (D2 L3), losing both matches in the World Cup.
• They have not scored more than one goal in any of their last seven World Cup games
• With 33 goals in 31 World Cup games (1.1 per game), Paraguay has the lowest average in at least 30 finals games outside of South Korea (41 in 41).
• Julio Enciso’s first goal against Germany was Paraguay’s first goal in the knockout stages of the finals, having failed to score in the previous five games.