ATLANTA (AP) — Lionel Mpasi blocked shots with his right hand, his left hand, even took one a bit below the belt.
At one point, England midfielder Jude Bellingham gave him a hug of respect with Mpasi sprawled on the World Cup turf, the ball safely in his grasp.
In the end, though, the Congo goalkeeper couldn't stop Harry Kane.
The England striker scored two late goals, the winner in the 86th minute, to prevent the upstart team from Africa from pulling
off one of the greatest shockers in World Cup history.
England is moving on to the round of 16 after a 2-1 victory Wednesday, while Mpasi will have to console himself with one of the great defensive performances in a tournament filled with stellar play from the keepers.
“I offered my body to science,” he said through a translator, managing a wry smile. “But we knew Harry Kane is a super striker and that we had to center on him. Too bad that twice we paid a little less attention to him.”
Indeed, the Congolese couldn't hold off one of the world's most dangerous goalscorers.
Still, it didn't diminish what Mpasi and his teammates nearly pulled off.
“It is my job to help the team and make saves,” Mpasi said in French. “Happily, I was able to make some during the game. I would have loved to save the two that turned into goals.”
Already, this was a historic tournament for a country whose only other World Cup appearance came in 1974, when the nation was known as Zaire. That was a quick three-and-out, the squad failing to even score a goal in its defeats — the most embarrassing of them a 9-0 blowout by Yugoslavia.
There was nothing to be ashamed about at its second World Cup.
Much of the credit should go to the 31-year-old Mpasi, who plays club soccer in his native France but represents the country of his parent's birth internationally, a nation best known in sports circles for Muhammad Ali's “Rumble in the Jungle” upset of George Foreman in 1974.
While a round of 32 victory over England wouldn't have been as impactful as that landmark heavyweight bout, it showcased a country — and a keeper — eager to make their mark on the international scene.
“I’m just proud — proud of my country, proud of my team,” Mpasi said. “We fight until the end of the game.”
He finished with five saves, the most painful of them coming near the end of the first half when he flung his body in front of a shot by Kane off a cross at the right post — appearing to take ball somewhere between, uhh, his waist and upper thigh.
“He made some incredible saves,” Kane said. “It looked like it was going to be one of those days.”
It was reminiscent of Mpasi's performance in a group game against Colombia, when he blocked eight shots in a 1-0 setback to the South American powerhouse.
“He's been phenomenal for us all tournament, especially the game against Columbia. He very kept us in the game," Congo defender Axel Tuanzebe said. “Credit to him, the work we puts in, and just the togetherness that we have as a group. We've been together for a while now and the relationship is there and the communication is there. I just look forward to playing with him and having my back for many more games."
Mpasi, too, looks forward to using this tournament as a building block for Congo soccer.
“I am filled with pride on how we represented Congo,” he said. “We fought with all we had but unfortunately it didn't work out. Now, we will rest and then work hard to make sure we can do things like this again.”
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See more of AP’s World Cup coverage here
