Former Scotland winger Pat Nevin commented on Paraguay's tactical gamesmanship.
"Paraguay tried to wind up the France players, little shoves and nudges but not enough to get a yellow card," Nevin told BBC Radio 5 Live.
He described the tactics as "every single dark art you can use."
French center-back William Saliba offered a different perspective, focusing on Paraguay's defensive resilience. "Today it was not easy for us because we played a strong team.
They were really good at defending and they had chances when they were on the ball.
But we stayed focused defensively and we had to find a way to score in the end. We did well," Saliba said.
Statistical data from the New York Times showed Paraguay failed to register a single shot on target and managed only one shot from inside the French penalty box.
France will face Morocco in the quarterfinals at Gillette Stadium in Foxborough on Thursday at 4 p. m.
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Eastern Time.
