Internationals | Mathys POTM as France beat Georgia in thriller

Mathys Tel was on target and named Player of the Match after France staged a stunning late comeback to beat Georgia in the UEFA Under-21 Championship on Saturday.

The flying forward was joined by Wilson Odobert in the starting line-up as France led 1-0, trailed 2-1 and then responded with goals in the 89th minute and 12th minute of added time to win 3-2 in Žilina, Slovakia.

Mathys - who has joined us permanently from FC Bayern - had already seen a free-kick tipped away by Luka Kharatishvili when he was caught in the face by Saba Sazonov as he headed at goal. A penalty was awarded and Mathys made no mistake from the penalty spot.

L'ouverture du score de Mathys Tel sur penalty 🔥

🇫🇷1-0🇬🇪 l #FRAGEO l #U21EURO pic.twitter.com/JLDnu15hzC

— Equipe de France ⭐⭐ (@equipedefrance) June 14, 2025

Wilson forced a fine save from Kharatishvili in the second half and the pair departed after 73 minutes - Mathys registering six efforts at goal - with France still 1-0 up. That quickly changed - Georgia levelled on 76 minutes through Giorgi Abuashvili and then Sazonov rose to head home for 2-1 with 88 minutes on the clock.

Les Bleuets weren't done thought - Johann Lepenant levelled within a minute and having seen a potential winner ruled out by VAR for offside, Thierno Barry struck in the 12th minute of added time to win it 3-2.

France now need a point from their final fixture against Poland on Tuesday (5pm UK) to progress to the quarter-finals.

After being named Player of the Match, UEFA's Technical Observer Group praised Mathys' showing, stating: "Tel showed his experience and leadership in everything he did. He was extremely quick, with and without the ball, and was the most dangerous player on the pitch. He also drew the foul for the penalty he converted for France's first goal."