Deschamps feared Mbappe would be 'chopped down'

Didier Deschamps feared that Kylian Mbappe would be "chopped down" by Paraguay in Saturday's ill-tempered clash in Philadelphia, which saw France advance to the World Cup quarterfinals.

Mbappe scored the only goal from the penalty spot in the 70th minute as Paraguay produced another stubborn defensive display, after their upset of Germany in the round of 32.

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However, it was their use of the dark arts that drew criticism after the game, with Paraguay's players repeatedly attempting to provoke Mbappe and his teammates.

Despite several tough challenges and off-the-ball incidents, Paraguay did not pick up a single yellow card, marking the first time they have avoided the referee's notebook entirely in a World Cup match since 1998 against Nigeria. France, on the other hand, had three players carded.

Clashes between both sets of players occurred during the second-half hydration break and at full-time, and Mbappe was seen laughing in the faces of Paraguay players on several occasions.

And Deschamps says some of Mbappe's teammates had a crucial role during and after the game – to serve as their captain's bodyguards.

"They know how to do it. We were the ones who were punished because we took three yellow cards, they made fouls that were not punished," Deschamps said. 

"I had to take Kylian off in 2018 against Uruguay [a 2-0 quarter-final win] because they were going to cut him up. 

"This evening, I asked the two strongest players on the bench to go and protect him immediately at the end, because you never know, the game is never over, maybe they were going to chop him down.

"It wasn't easy. They use every trick in the book. It's not the kind of football that will bring people to the stadium, but they defended well. It is always difficult against these South American teams."