France advanced to the World Cup quarter‑finals after a 1‑0 victory over Paraguay in the last‑16 match in Philadelphia. The win was sealed by Kylian Mbappé's penalty in the second half.
BBC Sport analysts Thomas Hitzlsperger, former Germany defender, Joe Hart and former England goalkeeper Micah Richards all described Paraguay's tactics as overly aggressive and disruptive. They said the South American side resorted to time‑wasting and physical play to frustrate the French side.
The pundits argued that Paraguay's approach, while within the rules, made for a less entertaining match and risked disciplinary action. France manager Didier Deschamps praised his team's composure in dealing with the provocation.
English goalkeeper Joe Hart was born on 19 April 1987. He began his career at Shrewsbury Town, moving to Manchester City in 2006, where he was the first-choice keeper from 2006 to 2018. Hart had loan spells at Birmingham City (2009–10), Torino (2016–17), and West Ham United (2017–18), followed by permanent moves to Burnley (2020–21) and Tottenham Hotspur (2021–22). He earned 75 senior caps for England between 2008 and 2017 and, as of the latest season, remains unattached.