Euro 2020: Kylian Mbappe 'sorry about this penalty' after France crash out to Switzerland

French striker missed decisive spot kick in last-16 shootout

Switzerland's midfielder Granit Xhaka and coach Vladimir Petkovic celebrate after winning their Uefa Euro 2020 round of 16 match against France in Bucharest, Romania, on June 28, 2021. AFP

Switzerland defeated world champions France 5-4 on penalties. AFP

French supporters react in a fan zone at a stadium in Gerland, near Lyon. AFP

French striker Kylian Mbappe failed to convert the decisive penalty in the shootout. AFP

Supporters at the fan zone near Lyon, France. AFP

It was Switzerland's first knockout stage victory at a tournament since 1938. AFP

Switzerland's goalkeeper Yann Sommer saves Mbappe's spot kick. AFP

It is also the first time Switzerland have made the last eight since the 1954 World Cup, which they hosted.. AFP

Mbappe is consoled by teammates after missing the penalty. AFP

France's players react to their defeat. AFP

Switzerland secured a 90th-minute equaliser and forced the extra period. AFP

Switzerland's Haris Seferovic celebrates scoring the team's second goal. AFP

France forward Kylian Mbappe has apologised for missing the decisive spot kick in Monday's 5-4 shootout loss to Switzerland that saw the world champions crash out of Euro 2020.

Two Swiss goals in the final 10 minutes levelled the match at 3-3 to force the last-16 clash in Bucharest to extra time.

Switzerland and France were perfect from 12 yards until the final kick when Yann Sommer saved from Mbappe.

Mbappe, 22, said France were "incredibly sad" after exiting the tournament and that his miss would keep him awake at night.

"I'm sorry about this penalty. I wanted to help the team but I failed," Mbappe wrote on Instagram.

"It's going to be hard to sleep after this, but unfortunately these are the ups and downs of this sport that I love so much.

"The most important [thing] will be to get back up again even stronger for future commitments. Congratulations and good luck to the Swiss team."

French coach Didier Deschamps backed Paris-Saint Germain striker Mbappe and the rest of the team to bounce back and learn from their tournament disappointment

"It will help everyone I think. Kylian, even if he didn't score a goal [at the Euros], he was decisive in many actions that we had, and he took responsibility to take this penalty," he told a news conference.

"No-one is really angry with him. I talked to our players, we know the strength of this team, we've had many magnificent moments together -- today it really hurts, there's lots of sadness," he added.

Deschamps, 52, dismissed suggestions none of Mbappe's teammates went to comfort him after his spot kick was saved.

"The whole group is united in the dressing room. No-one talks about 'you made this mistake' or 'you made that mistake', Kylian knows his responsibility," added Deschamps.

France were 3-1 up and cruising with 15 minutes to go after a superb goal by Paul Pogba, but the dogged Swiss scored twice to force extra time before eventually going through to face Spain in the quarter-finals in St Petersburg on Friday.

"Today we were against a strong Swiss team, they gave us some problems in the first half, and of course France is used to having compact opponents," Deschamps explained.

"We scored our second goal in the second half which changed everything and, if you want, 10 minutes before the end we could have managed our two-goal advantage better."

France v Switzerland ratings

FRANCE RATINGS: Hugo Lloris 7 - A save at a vital stage in the game kept the deficit to a single goal as the Tottenham goalkeeper got a strong hand to Ricardo Rodriguez’s penalty. Couldn’t do much about the other goals. Got a hand to one of the penalties in the shootout but not enough to keep the ball out. Reuters

Presnel Kimpembe 5 - Looked comfortable before being beaten far too easily by Gavranovic for the equaliser. Soft defending at times. Reuters

Raphael Varane 6 - Was made to work hard at times but got a touch to a ball that was destined to be converted. The most assured of a messy French defence. AFP

Clement Lenglet 5 - Didn’t challenge Haris Seferovic in the air for the opener. A crucial error to make in a big game - and replaced at half-time for Kingsley Coman. AFP

Adrien Rabiot 6 - Came close with a scorching effort that drifted narrowly wide of the post in the 28th minute but it was strange to see Rabiot operate from the left wingback position on Monday night. AFP

Paul Pogba 8 - Slowly came into the game and was more positive in the second half. Scored one of the goals of the tournament with a wonder-effort from range and made no mistake with his penalty. Reuters

N’Golo Kante 7 - Tidied up in the middle of the park.as always. A typical Kante performance - but not enough on the night to get the win. AFP

Benjamin Pavard 5 - A shocking challenge lacked any sort of care to concede a penalty and put the tie in a precarious position for France when 1-0 down. AFP

Kylian Mbappe 6 - Challenged defenders every time he got on the ball and found Benzema for the equaliser but it just didn’t click in front of goal for Mbappe on Monday night The Paris Saint-Germain star was wasteful with his chances and that didn’t change when missing the crucial penalty in the shootout. Hard luck. AFP

Karim Benzema 8 - Found good space in the box during the first half but couldn’t pull the trigger fast enough. An exquisite first touch and flick over the goalkeeper levelled the scoring for France just moments after Switzerland missed a penalty. The Real Madrid star then headed home to put France ahead. He will be wondering how his team didn’t win the game from that point. Reuters

Antoine Griezmann 7 - The Barcelona and Real Madrid stars combined for France’s second goal as Griezmann chipped towards the back post to leave an easy finish for Karim Benzema. AFP

SUB: Kingsley Coman (Lenglet 45) 6 - Almost won the game in the last second with a shot that smashed off the post. AFP

SUB: Moussa Sissoko (Griezmann 88) N/R - On to help see the game out but soon saw Switzerland hit a sensational equaliser courtesy of Gavranovic. AFP

Olivier Giroud (Benzema 94) N/R - Got up well in the last seconds of extra time but couldn’t direct his header past Sommer. AFP

SUB: Marcus Thuram (Coman 111) N/R - The son of France legend Lilian Thuram came on for Kingsley Coman who looked to be carrying an injury. Took his penalty well, firing it into an unreachable corner of the goal past Sommer. AFP

SWITZERLAND RATINGS: Yann Sommer 8 - A reaction save in extra time prevented Pavard’s effort. Not much he could do about very well-taken goals from France. The hero in the shootout. EPA

Ricardo Rodriguez 6 - A missed penalty gave momentum to France who took full advantage of Rodriguez’s error. A rollercoaster of emotions for the defender who saw his side come back and clinch the game in dramatic fashion on penalties. AFP

Manuel Akanji 7 - No nonsense from the Borussia Dortmund man. Akanji got rid of the ball when it got into dangerous areas and didn’t take chances against a dangerous French side. Took his penalty like a striker. EPA

Nico Elvedi 6 - Looked scrappy at times with challenges but showed professionalism to remain cool after picking up a yellow card. Reuters

Steven Zuber 8 - Defended strongly and was once again involved in the goal, picking up an assist with an accurate cross for the opener. EPA

Granit Xhaka 9 - The Swiss captain was calm on the ball, and looked as though he had the ball on a string at times. An instrumental performance from Granit Xhaka in both attack and defence. The best player on the pitch who may have raised his stock on Monday night as Arsenal prepare for bids from Europe. Reuters

Remo Freuler 7 - Worked hard amid a difficult midfield battle against Paul Pogba and N’Golo Kante. EPA

Silvan Widmer 6 - Made a number of tackles and worked hard against France’s dangerous threat in Mbappe. Almost headed the ball into his own goal in the second half. Reuters

Xherdan Shaqiri 6 - Not as effective as he was in the last round against Turkey but Shaqiri tried to be the key to unlock the French defence. Made a number of good runs throughout the match and wasn’t always picked out by teammates. AFP

Haris Seferovic 8 - A world-class header put Switzerland one goal up as the target man leapt above Lenglet and executed perfectly to beat Lloris. Headed his second of the game after finding space in the French box to begin Switzerland’s comeback. AFP

Breel Embolo 7 - Positive runs saw the Borussia Monchengladbach man regularly challenge defenders. Could have shot when in space during the second half but was slow to react. AFP

SUB: Mario Gavranovic (Shaqiri 73) N/R - On for Shaqiri and the Dinamo Zagreb made no mistake when his chance presented itself - beating Kimpembe before striking into the left corner in the 90th minute. Reuters

SUB: Kevin Mbabu (Widmer 73) N/R - Provided energy on the flank and whipped a precise ball into Seferovic for Switzerland’s second goal. Enjoyed a battle with Coman on the flank which created an open spectacle. AFP

SUB: Kevin Mbabu (Widmer 73) N/R - Provided energy on the flank and whipped a precise ball into Seferovic for Switzerland’s second goal. Enjoyed a battle with Coman on the flank which created an open spectacle. AFP

SUB: Christian Fassnacht (Zuber 79) N/R - On for Zuber who had worked hard throughout the game. Rarely gave the ball away. EPA

SUB: Ruben Vargas (Embolo 79) N/R - On for Embolo and delivered in the penalty shootout.. AFP

SUB: Admir Mehmedi (Rodriguez 87) N/R - Lead the line but couldn’t find the goal with two shots. Scored Switzerland’s fifth penalty to heap pressure on Mbappe. Reuters

Switzerland manager Vladimir Petkovic and captain Granit Xhaka hailed their achievement as they reached the last eight of a major tournament since they hosted the World Cup in 1954.

“No normal side would have come back from 3-1 down against the world champions,” said Petkovic, who equalled the record for the most matches in charge of the Switzerland team.

Xhaka said they had written a new chapter, which was particularly satisfying after the stinging criticism that followed their 3-0 loss to Italy in Rome on June 16 in their second Group A match.

“I’ve always said this team deserved a lot more than you can read," he told the post-match news conference.

"There was so much discussion about this team. They said we were arrogant but I can guarantee you one thing, we really wrote a history. All Swiss people can be really proud. We achieved something that is impossible to describe with words."

Swiss goalkeeper Yann Sommer saves a penalty from French forward Kylian Mbappe at the National Arena in Bucharest on June 28, 2021. AFP

Trailing 1-0 at the break, after a disjointed and dispirited first-half display, France were staring at a 2-0 scoreline before goalkeeper Hugo Lloris saved Ricardo Rodriguez's penalty.

That reprieve prompted a blistering response with Karim Benzema scoring twice and then Paul Pogba scoring a 75th-minute screamer to make it 3-1.

Game over, many of those watching would have felt, but from the way they played, the French too made the fatal mistake of under-estimating the Swiss, who forced the game into extra time through Haris Seferovic's second and then a 90th minute equaliser from Mario Gavranovic.

"Nobody believed in us any more at that stage," said goalkeeper Sommer.

"We felt they had become a bit complacent and maybe thought they had already won it. So we used that to our advantage."