Kylian Mbappe continued his pursuit of Lionel Messi’s World Cup scoring record with a brace as France defeated Iraq 3-0 in a weather-disrupted Group I clash in Philadelphia.
The French captain scored in each half to take his World Cup tally to 16 goals in just 16 matches, moving within two goals of Messi, who earlier became the tournament’s all-time leading scorer.
The victory also sent France into the knockout stages with a second consecutive win, maintaining their perfect start to the competition.
Weather delay fails to slow France
France took control early and were rewarded in the 14th minute when Mbappe curled a left-footed effort into the far corner from outside the penalty area.
However, the match was heavily affected by severe weather conditions. Lightning strikes around Philadelphia forced a delay of more than two hours between the first and second halves after heavy rain had already disrupted supporter access to the stadium.
Despite the interruption, Didier Deschamps’ side returned from the extended break with renewed mentality.
France doubled their lead shortly after the restart when Iraq goalkeeper Ahmed Basil failed to deal with a short goal-kick, allowing Ousmane Dembele to set up Mbappe for a simple finish.
Dembele ends long wait for major tournament goal
France continued to create opportunities, with Adrien Rabiot missing a free header and Michael Olise striking the crossbar.
Their third goal eventually arrived through Dembele, who finished calmly after being played through by an excellent outside-of-the-foot pass from Olise.
The strike marked Dembele’s first goal for France at a major international tournament in his 20th appearance.
Iraq threatened sporadically through Rebin Sulaka and Ali Al Hamadi, but France remained firmly in control throughout the contest.
Mbappe had a late opportunity to complete his hat-trick but fired over the bar after racing clear of the Iraqi defence.
The result leaves France top of Group I with six points from two matches, while Iraq remain bottom without a point.
France’s final group match comes against Norway, while Iraq face Senegal as they seek to avoid an early exit.