France recorded the biggest victory in European Championship qualifying on Saturday, dominating 10-man Gibraltar with a 14-0 win.
Kylian Mbappe secured a hat-trick and Warren Zaire-Emery marked his debut with a goal.
This achievement surpassed their previous record and sets a milestone as the first time where a European team scored 14 goals in a World Cup or European Championship qualifying match, surpassing Germany’s 13-0 win over San Marino in 2006.
“Being down to 10, already with 11 it’s complicated for them, but it doesn’t take away the credit for us even if we could have been more efficient, it’s as much about respecting the opponent as scoring goals,” France manager Didier Deschamps said.
In the first half of the Group B match, Marcus Thuram, Zaire-Emery, Mbappe, Jonathan Clauss, Kingsley Coman and Youssouf Fofana all found the net.
France were already assured of top spot in the group and Deschamps granted 17-year-old Zaire-Emery his debut, making him the youngest French player since 1914.
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Despite the teenager becoming the youngest scorer for France since that historic date with a 16th-minute goal, his debut was cut short when he suffered an ankle injury from a challenge by Ethan Santos. As a result, the Gibraltar defender was sent off.
With Gibraltar down to 10 men, France had a clear path to surpass their previous biggest win of 10-0 over Azerbaijan in 1995.
Adrien Rabiot and Coman’s second brought the record closer and Ousmane Dembele made it 10-0 before Mbappe sealed his hat-trick.
Mbappe’s stellar performance propelled him past Antoine Griezmann, securing the third spot on France’s all-time scorers list with 46 goals. He now trails only five goals behind Thierry Henry.
Substitute Olivier Giroud, France’s all-time leading scorer, got in on the action with two late goals, bringing his tally to 56 goals for his country.
Having secured victories in all seven group games, France aims to maintain their flawless record as they head to Greece on Tuesday.
“We’re going to enjoy what we did tonight, we’re not going to Greece to go for a ride. It’s a new goal,” Deschamps said.
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Gibraltar, enduring their most significant defeat and still seeking their first goal in the qualifying group, conclude their campaign with a home match against the Netherlands.
