In the morning of Beijing Time, June 23, in Matchday 2 of Group I of the World Cup group stage, Kylian Mbappé bagged a brace while Ousmane Dembélé contributed one goal and one assist, helping France cruise past Iraq 3-0. With two straight wins in the group stage, France became the fifth team to secure an early spot in the knockout stage. Notably, the match was suspended for two hours due to heavy rain and thunderstorms.
Ousmane Dembélé celebrates his goal.
In the opening group fixture, France beat Senegal 3-1, while Iraq lost 1-4 to Norway. A win in this game would guarantee France early qualification from the group, and the game also marked Mbappé’s 100th cap for his national team, a personal milestone.
Kylian Mbappé takes a shot.
From kick-off, France settled into the game quickly and took control of the tempo. In the 14th minute of the first half, Michael Olise provided an assist, and Mbappé unleashed a spectacular long-range strike from outside the penalty area to break the deadlock, putting France 1-0 ahead. It was Mbappé’s 15th World Cup goal, tying him with Ronaldo for third place on the all-time World Cup top scorers’ list.
After the interval, weather became an unexpected disruption to the fixture. Heavy rain and thunderstorms delayed the start of the second half by roughly two hours.
Per tournament regulations, play must be halted if lightning is detected within an eight-mile radius of the stadium. Following a lightning strike, officials must wait approximately 30 minutes before resuming play. If further lightning strikes occur during this waiting period, the timer restarts.
A similar incident took place at the Club World Cup held in the United States last summer. Chelsea’s match against Benfica in Charlotte, North Carolina, was suspended for around two hours because of lightning. The fixture ultimately lasted four hours and 38 minutes from kickoff to full time.
When play resumed, France showed no signs of disruption. In the 54th minute, Iraq’s goalkeeper made an error; Dembélé won possession and unselfishly set up Mbappé, who tapped home to complete his brace and stretch France’s lead to 2-0. Mbappé scored twice in consecutive World Cup matches and moved further up the all-time scoring chart. With 16 goals, he drew level with Miroslav Klose in second place, only behind Lionel Messi, who has 18 World Cup goals.
In the 66th minute, Olise delivered another assist. Dembélé received the ball inside the box and slotted home calmly to make it 3-0 for France. Remarkably, it was Dembélé’s first ever goal at a World Cup tournament.
At full time, France claimed a comfortable 3-0 victory over Iraq courtesy of Mbappé’s double and Dembélé’s maiden World Cup goal. With six points from two matches, France sealed an early group-stage berth. Iraq sit bottom of the group with zero points from two defeats.
Reporter: Huang Qiyuan, Yangtze Evening News / Purple Cow News