Mbappé breaks France record as World Cup kicks off with Senegal win

Mbappé makes history in opener

France 3–1 Senegal in the World Cup opener, and Kylian Mbappé did what Kylian Mbappé does. Two goals. All-time leading scorer for France. No. 53 and No. 54 for the national team, passing Olivier Giroud (1). Your team did not need to get out of second gear. Senegal pulled one back but the result was never in doubt.

A Father's Day Mbappé in LEGO form

LEGO timed this one perfectly. A Kylian Mbappé, Football Highlights set drops Sunday 21 June for Father's Day (1). Brick-built Mbappé on the same weekend he breaks the France scoring record. You cannot script it better than that.

Arsenal shut down Manu Koné links

Reports in Italy had Manu Koné agreeing personal terms with Arsenal. Not true, according to the club. Arsenal have flatly denied any interest in the midfielder, currently at Roma (2). Move on.

Donovan calls France arrogant, Henry and Zlatan fire back

Landon Donovan went on air and called your team arrogant, said the Senegal win looked too easy, and claimed France lack intensity (3). Thierry Henry did not let it slide. Zlatan Ibrahimovic weighed in too, dismissing the criticism bluntly (3). The internet had a field day.

Fan reactions

Reddit picked up on the Ibrahimovic angle fast. The clip of Zlatan calling the American punditry ignorant spread across r/soccer within hours (1). Most fans are treating the Donovan comments as comedy, not controversy, the mood is that if winning 3–1 without breaking a sweat is a problem, it is a good problem to have. Full thread here.