WFI‘s Adam Brandon counts down to Russia 2018 with 90 World Cup goals in 90 days, scored in the minute corresponding to the day in the countdown.
Context
France and Paraguay met in the opening game of their group in the 1958 World Cup in Sweden and it turned out to be a ten goal thriller.
Paraguay had stunned many by thrashing Uruguay 5-0 to qualify for the tournament, while France were considered a strong side with a talented group of players looking to impress on the big stage.
Raymond Kopa and Maryan Wisnieski were two of the main stars in this French side and both were of Polish descent.
The real sensation of this World Cup though would be a striker born in Marrakech, Morocco – his name was Just Fontaine. He only moved to France eight years earlier, but made a name for himself scoring plenty of goals for Nice and Stade Reims.
The South Americans opened the scoring but many expected this to be a close match.
The Goal
And it wasn’t long until France were level…
What Happened Next?
That was the first of three for Just Fontaine in this match as the match astonishingly finished 7-3 to France after a topsy-turvy first half. He would net thirteen in total as France made it all the way to the semi-finals. They claimed third place thanks to Fontaine scoring four against West Germany.
Fontaine wouldn’t play in another World Cup as injuries cut his career short. A spell in management in France was unsuccessful. His thirteen goals in one World Cup remain a record.
Extras
Just Fontaine’s 13 goals:
