Lewandowski scores as Poland beats Saudis
AL RAYYAN, Qatar — Finally! Robert Lewandowski at last scored a goal in a World Cup match on Saturday, helping Poland beat Saudi Arabia 2-0 and boosting his team's chances of reaching the knockout stages.
Lewandowski shed tears after scoring in the 82nd minute. He raced toward the corner with his arms outstretched, then stayed slumped on the field as teammates rushed to congratulate him. He got up, rubbed his face, and blew a kiss to the crowd.
“Today everything I had inside, the dreams, the importance of the occasion, all those dreams from my childhood came through," Lewandowski said. "It was so significant.”
One of the best forwards in the world, Lewandowski's barren streak at the World Cup was somewhat puzzling. Now, in his fifth match at the tournament, it's over.
“I always wanted to score at the World Cup and this dream came true,” said Lewandowski, who had a penalty saved in Poland's 0-0 draw with Mexico on Tuesday. “It's not easy, because we didn't have many opportunities in the first match and I missed that penalty.”
Against Saudi Arabia, Lewandowski also set up the opener in the 40th minute when he kept the ball in play after goalkeeper Mohammed Al-Owais' initial block, then laid it back for Piotr Zielinski to knock in.
Lewandowski, who had no involvement in any goals in his first four World Cup games, also hit the post, and Al-Owais later denied the Barcelona player from scoring another goal toward the end of the match.
It was the one that went in that brought tears to the 34-year-old striker's eyes.
“The older I get, the more emotional I get,” Lewandowski said, referring to his reaction after finally scoring. “I'm aware that when it comes to the World Cup, that this might be my last World Cup. And I wanted to underline that I played at World Cups and I scored.”
Poland coach Czeslaw Michniewicz said he wasn't surprised by Lewandowski's moving reaction.
“I know how deeply he lived the last match,” Michniewicz said. “I'm very sorry he wasn't lucky enough, he hit the post and the goalkeeper made a save. He could have had a hat trick today.”
AUSTRALIA 1, TUNISIA 0
AL WAKRAH, Qatar — Mitchell Duke celebrated scoring Australia's winning goal by forming a “J” with his fingers in a tribute to his son Jaxson, who was in the stands.
Coach Graham Arnold dragged injured winger Martin Boyle — on crutches — into the celebratory huddle as fans sang merrily along to Men at Work's “Down Under,” blaring over the stadium speakers after the final whistle.
Later, Arnold was wiping away tears.
It was an emotion-filled day for Australia, which beat Tunisia 1-0 for only its third win in 18 World Cup matches.
Duke gave Australia the lead midway through the first half with a header.
“I actually was messaging some of my family, saying that I was going to score today, and I told my son that I was going to be able to share this moment with him and get that celebration,” Duke said. “I haven't seen it yet, but apparently he did it back to me from the stadium, which was a really special moment that I'm going to treasure for the rest of my life.”
Australia hadn't won at the World Cup since beating Serbia in 2010 and it means the Socceroos still have a chance to qualify for the round of 16, despite losing to defending champion France 4-1 in their opening match.
Boyle was injured a few weeks before the tournament and Arnold explained why he moved him into the team's staff as “vibe manager” in Qatar.
“To keep all the guys up, because he's one of the most fantastic blokes you'll ever meet,” Arnold said. “There was no way he wanted to go home, and no way I wanted to send him home. He deserves it more than anybody for what he did in the qualifying campaign.”
FRANCE 2, DENMARK 1
DOHA, Qatar — Kylian Mbappe scored two goals and put defending champion France into the knockout stage of the World Cup with a win over Denmark.
Mbappe gave his team the lead in the 61st minute and then scored the winner in the 86th with his right thigh as Les Bleus became the first team to advance to the round of 16.
The France forward swapped passes with Theo Hernandez down the left flank and poked the ball past Denmark goalkeeper Kasper Schmeichel for the first goal. He then jumped acrobatically to guide in the second after a cross from Antoine Griezmann.
Denmark defender Andreas Christensen equalized for his team with a header in the 68th.
Mbappe scored four goals when France won the World Cup four years ago, including one in the final. He now has 31 goals for France, moving him one ahead of Just Fontaine — the alltime leading scorer at a single World Cup with 13 goals at the 1958 tournament.
France beat Australia 4-1 in its opening game while the Danes drew 0-0 with Tunisia. The Aussies beat Tunisia 1-0 earlier Saturday.