Mbappé Admits France Were ‘Completely Switched Off’ in First Half of 6–4 Defeat to England

France captain says Les Bleus paid the price for a disastrous opening 45 minutes despite mounting a spirited comeback in the World Cup third-place playoff

France captain Kylian Mbappé has admitted Les Bleus “didn’t do the shirt justice” during the first half of their dramatic 6–4 defeat to England in the FIFA World Cup third-place playoff, describing his team’s display as “completely stunned” before a second-half revival fell short.

England raced into a commanding 4–0 lead by half-time, with Bukayo Saka scoring twice alongside goals from Declan Rice and Ezri Konsa. France responded superbly after the break as Bradley Barcola, Mbappé (twice) and Ousmane Dembélé found the net, but Saka completed his hat-trick from the penalty spot before Jude Bellingham sealed England’s 6–4 victory in stoppage time.

Reflecting on France’s performance after the match, Mbappé acknowledged supporters were justified in questioning the team’s first-half display.

“I can understand why some might feel that, in the first half, we were being complacent or disrespecting the shirt.”

The Real Madrid forward, however, insisted the problem was not a lack of commitment but a complete loss of focus at football’s highest level.

“Personally, I would say we were simply being human—and unfortunately, we cannot afford to be human.”

Mbappé admitted England’s blistering start left France shell-shocked before Didier Deschamps’ side rediscovered their identity after the interval.

“We were completely stunned, and they really shook us awake.”

The France captain praised his teammates’ response after the restart, believing they once again showed the mentality expected of one of world football’s elite nations.

“In the second half, we went back to being top-level players, mental machines.”

Despite reducing the deficit from 4–0 to 5–4, France were unable to complete the comeback as England held firm before Bellingham’s late goal ended any hopes of a remarkable turnaround. The 10-goal encounter became the highest-scoring third-place playoff in FIFA World Cup history.

Mbappé also revealed his disappointment that France could not deliver a winning farewell for head coach Didier Deschamps, whose tenure ended with the defeat.

“In the end, we didn’t win, and that’s a shame for the coach. We wanted to do something for him.”

Individually, Mbappé still achieved another historic milestone. His two goals took his World Cup career tally to 22, making him the competition’s all-time leading scorer, while his 10 goals at the 2026 tournament left him firmly in contention for the Golden Boot.

Although France’s World Cup campaign ended without a medal, Mbappé’s candid assessment underlined the fine margins at the highest level—where one disastrous half of football proved impossible to overcome despite one of the tournament’s most spirited second-half performances.