Welcome home, France.
Back playing in France for the first time since winning the 2018 World Cup, the French national team received a rousing reception from its fans: a magnificent tifo that portended a magnificent performance from Kylian Mbappé against the Netherlands on Sunday.
Fresh off a scoreless draw against 2014 World Cup champion Germany in Munich on Thursday, Les Bleus defeated the Netherlands 2-1 in the second League A, Group 1 UEFA Nations League match.
Before kickoff, the blue-clad fans at the Stade de France unveiled a marvelous tifo of two golden stars, representing the two World Cup championships now belonging to France.
The scenes were epic.
No place like home.#FiersdetreBleus #FRANED pic.twitter.com/uLLxlS7Sye
— French Team (@FrenchTeam) September 9, 2018
— Frédéric Calenge (@FredCalenge) September 9, 2018
The first time Les Bleus won a World Cup, back in 1998, the tournament was played in France, so this was an inspiring moment of unity not seen before, the French fans thanking their players for their performance in Russia.
But it didn’t take long for Mbappé to reassert himself as the focus.
The 19-year-old winger had a marvelous World Cup and is already scoring goals left and right this season with PSG. On Sunday, he showed why he’s quickly becoming one of the most popular players in the world — even before he scored the opener for France.
Before the match even began, Mbappé was enjoying himself in warmups, doing whatever you might call this move with impressive nonchalance.
#FRAPBS à 20h45 sur @M6 pic.twitter.com/f5bf6W1S3e
— Equipe de France (@equipedefrance) September 9, 2018
Early in the match, Mbappé showed off his electric pace and panache with this move down the flank. Few in the game can match Mbappé's combination of speed and dribbling right now.
Who the hell wants to watch @NFL when Kylian Mbappé is doing shit like this?pic.twitter.com/YuTMyRFZyH
— Travis Yoesting (@TravisYoesting) September 9, 2018
His shot didn’t go in, but he’d find the back of the net soon enough.
Mbappé tallied his goal in the 14th minute, though to be fair much of it was down to poor play from the Dutch.
¡GOOOL! Repitan después de mí: ¡¡¡KILYAAAAAAN MBAPPÉ!!!
Uds: #FRANED Míralo EN VIVO y EN EXCLUSIVA por aquí: https://t.co/y8wuontaEy pic.twitter.com/3h3ABYZDUk— Univision Deportes (@UnivisionSports) September 9, 2018
Mbappé didn’t monopolize the tricks in the France vs Netherlands highlights. Antoine Griezmann, who had a number of defense-unlocking passes, nutmegged Ajax defender Matthijs de Ligt.
Antoine Griezmann with a nifty nutmeg on De Ligt.
Delightful skill by the #France and #Atleti star. #FRANED #LesBleus #Tekkers pic.twitter.com/YgJx6XYaxG— #ThankYouDeuce (@JogaBonito_USA) September 9, 2018
And we’d be remiss if we left out Olivier Giroud’s stunning volley to score the match winner in the 75th minute. Much has been made of the Chelsea striker’s goal drought, but as anyone who follows his career can tell you, he scores incredible goals, and Sunday’s was no different.
¡POR FIN! GOLAZOOOOOOOO DE @_OlivierGiroud_
Y, ustedes que no creían en él... ¡Siempre confiamos en ti Olivier, SIEMPRE! #FRANED pic.twitter.com/ls1G4HctKe— Univision Deportes (@UnivisionSports) September 9, 2018
The goal pushed Giroud past a tie with Zinedine Zidane and into fourth place on France's all-time scoring list with 32. Thierry Henry owns the record with 51, but considering Mbappé has nine before he's 20, he may break that record.
But how about a little love for the Dutch in the France vs Netherlands highlights?
The Netherlands held its own against the world champions, who started the same 10 outfield players who played in the final against Croatia in July.
Take this move from Georginio Wijnaldum, for instance, who torched Griezmann and received a pantsing for his efforts.
Great skill by Wijnaldum with a roulette turn to beat Griezmann, who then almost ripped his shorts off.#FRANED #France #Netherlands #NationsLeague pic.twitter.com/n6WDSmxgjz
— #ThankYouDeuce (@JogaBonito_USA) September 9, 2018
The Netherlands canceled out Mbappé’s early goal in the 67th minute, as Ryan Babel and his weird hairdo wanted it more than Benjamin Pavard at the back post.
¡GOOOL! Y se durmieron los franceses
Babel aprovecha el centro y empuja el balón para el empate.Mira el #FRANED EN VIVO y EN EXCLUSIVA por aquí: https://t.co/y8wuontaEy pic.twitter.com/J1ias5nYIS
— Univision Deportes (@UnivisionSports) September 9, 2018
Stunningly, Babel’s shot was the first on target from the Dutch all game. Babel, a former Liverpool winger, hadn't scored for the Netherlands in more than 13 years.
But the Netherlands couldn't see out the draw, as France and its home crowd proved too much to overcome.