The following sentences are all true. Denmark played a very good game. They attacked France bravely and intelligently. They controlled long periods. They defended their lines brilliantly at times. Kylian Mbappé had a curiously wayward night. France beat Denmark 2-1 with two scruffy second-half goals from Mbappé.
A show of strength from France, then, even if it also brooked a glimmer of weakness. They became the first team to qualify for the knockout stages, and even if they are yet to dominate they have already shown more than enough to serve notice on the rest of the competition. You can match their effort. You can thwart their tactics. But they’ll still always have Kylian.
